The Poems: Impossible Gifties

New collection of ten poems
by Sheena Blackhall
celebrating Edinburgh's Book Sculptures
exhibited as part of the GIFTED Tour
at Aberdeen's Central Library until September 6th 2012

(Gifted Tour organised by the Scottish Poetry Library in partnership with
Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature).

Impossible Gifties will be available from Severin Books early in September.

The Poems: The Merry Dancers

The Poems The Merry Dancers: ISBN 1 870 978 22 4. A collaboration between Tom Hubbard and Sheena Blackhall. Poems, ballads and tales from the North Sea and the Baltic, in Scots and English, published by Malfranteaux Concepts, Aberdeen 2012, printed by Thistle Reprographics, 55 Holburn Street, Aberdeen. Cover designed by Claire Hubbard. Kirkhill Primary School in Aberdeen was working on a project for children, ‘Stories from the North Sea Shore’, which aims to link the east coast of Scotland with its neighbouring coasts in mainland Europe. The idea inspired this joint pamphlet of poems by Blackhall and Hubbard exploring the folklore and translations from points along these coasts and some way inland, for general readership. The pamphlet is their response to the cultures of Aberdeenshire, Fife, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgian Flanders, Baltic Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Russia, Finland, Sweden, Norway and the Faeroes. A Writer’s Residency at the Château de Lavigny in Switzerland gave Dr Hubbard the time and conditions to work on his part of the closing stages of the project. Both Blackhall and Hubbard are graduates of Aberdeen University. Claire Hubbard graduated BA in Design and Creativity from Dundee College.

The Poems:Steens

STEENS:Poems & Tales in Scots & English by Sheena Blackhall. Pub. Malfranteaux Concepts Aberdeen July 2012 ISBN 978 1 870978 22 4. Printed by Thistle Reprographics, 55 Holburn Street Aberdeen. Cover: Amoghavira c/o Dhanakosa Buddhist Retreat Centre, Balquhidder.Some of these poems were written on a writing retreat at the Triratna Buddhist Centre, Dhanakosa, in June 2012. Others were written on research at the Orkney Islands in July 2012. Various poems have already been published on http://www.poemhunter.com/sheena-blackhall.

The Poems: Matzevot:A Walk on the Face of Gravestones

The Poems: Matzevot: A Walk on the Face of Gravestones. ISBN 9778 1 870978 19 4. Published by Malfranteaux Concepts, May 2012 Printed by Thistle Reprographics, 55 Holburn Street Aberdeen. Some of these poems were inspired by works in the Aberdeen Artists’ 2012 Exhibition. The Animal Refugees is to be published in a forthcoming schools’ anthology published by Madhubun Education Books for classes 1-8 in Uttar Pradesh, India. Another poem submitted to Inspired? Get Writing, (the National Galleries of Scotland) won a certificate of Special Merit. Buddha at the Bodhi Tree, Sri Lanka, is published on the Dong Hung Temple Buddhist Education Centre website, Sri Lanka. The Korean owersetts are published in the magazine Cabhsair/Causeway Volume 3 issue 1. In Praise o Lallans is published in Lallans magazine. Several poems were written during an on- site visit to Cambridge. The stories were written as a result of historical research carried out for the children’s book, Apardion,published by the Aberdeen Reading Bus. The English poems will be published on http://www.poemhunter.com/sheena-blackhall. My Favourite Place in Scotland: Balquhidder Eden, appears on the website hosted by the Scottish Book Trust and BBC Radio Scotland. See http://sheenablackhall.blogspot.com for a comprehensive list of the poet’s work. May 2012 Copyright, Sheena Blackhall

The Poems:Three Cats Flying

The Poems: Three Cats Flying.Three Cats Flying. Pub: Malfranteaux Concepts, Aberdeen 2012 ISBN 978 1 870978 32 3. March 2012. The Cover: ‘In 1941, Jewish-American photographer Philippe Halsman met the surrealist artist Salvador Dalí in New York City and they began to collaborate in the late 1940s. The 1948 work Dali Atomicus explores the idea of suspension, depicting three cats flying, water thrown from a bucket, an easel, a footstool and Salvador Dalí all seemingly suspended in mid-air. The title of the photograph is a reference to Dalí's work Leda Atomica (which can be seen in the right of the photograph behind the two cats.) This is the unretouched version of the photograph that was published in LIFE magazine. In this version the wires suspending the easel and the painting, the hand of the assistant holding the chair and the prop holding up the footstool can still be seen. The frame on the easel is still empty. The copyright for this photo was registered with the U.S. Copyright Office but according to the U.S. Library of Congress was not renewed, putting it in the public domain in the United States and elsewhere...The photograph is Halsman’s homage both to the new atomic age (prompted by physicists’ then-recent announcement that all matter hangs in a constant state of suspension) and to Dalí’s surrealist masterpiece "Leda Atomica" (seen on the right, behind the cats, and unfinished at the time). It took six hours, 28 jumps, and a roomful of assistants throwing angry cats and buckets of water into the air to get the perfect exposure.’ (Extracts from Wikipedia).Some of these poems were inspired by the exhibition From Van Gogh to Vettriano, Hidden Gems from Private Collections (2012), Aberdeen Art Gallery. The stories emerged from historical research funded by the Aberdeen Reading Bus, into some of the city’s heritage sites. The English poems are published online at http://www.poemhunter.com/sheena-blackhall. I am indebted to Sir Duncan Rice for bringing to my intention The Death of Kjartan and Audun’s Bear, which are here rendered in Scots. The cover is a copy of Dali Atomicus by the Jewish-American photographer Philippe Halsman.

The Honey That Came From The Sea

The Honey That Came From The Sea

Now also available as a free eBook, download it free at Smashwords.com choose from all of the popular formats.

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The Chimaera Institute

The Chimaera Institute

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The Poems:Thorgunna's Curse

Thorgunna’s Curse(ISBN : 978 1 870978 26 2), Poems & Tales in Scots & English was
published by Malfranteaux Concepts, Aberdeen in Jan. 2012 & printed by Thistle Reprographics, (thistle_repro@btconnect.com).Cost: £3.00,copyright: S. Blackhall.The cover is a copy of La mort: mon ironie dépasse toutes les autres! (1889), from a collection of Odilon Redon lithographs at Gallica. Some of these poems have already been published in the Aberdeen Evening Express, in Northword Now Autumn/Winter 2011 and in Remembrance: Poems for Armistice Sunday 2011 (Malfranteaux Concepts) . Others appear in A Celebration of Marischal College, Lys Wyness (Aberdeen Town & County History Society 2012)and on http://www.poemhunter.com/sheena-blackhall. Various stories were written as a result of historical research carried out by the poet for the children’s history book Apardion, published by the Reading Bus Press (2011). Buddha- Frost appears in Tales from Satan’s Grotto (Malfranteaux Concepts)other work appears in Poetic Justice: A Collection of Poems on the Theme of Human Rights, published by Amnesty International Aberdeen Group. Causeway / Cabhsair Issue 4 features the poem Hemingway and the short story The Dream of a Fisherman’s Wife.

The Bairn Books: Apardion

The Bairn-Books:Apardion, a Leopard’s Quest 2011 (pub.The Reading Bus ISBN 987-0-9564837-8-2 is written by Sheena Blackhall with Illustrations by Julie Lacome and edited by Bill Burnett. It is the 5th commercial book produced by The Reading Bus, launched on 27.10.11 at Marischal College Aberdeen. The book tells the tale of a spirit from the Northern Lights who visits Aberdeen to discover if this might be his birth place. Apardion visits 14 heritage landmarks on his travels and at each discovers secrets from the past. With a foreword by HRH Duchess of Rothesay, the book will be a springboard to engage schools across Aberdeen to research the heritage of their Granite City. The 12 Associated School Groups in Aberdeen are being encouraged to adopt one of the heritage landmarks in the book, sponsored by different businesses and will research its rich history and culture. Their findings will be translated in a variety of mediums including film, podcasts and literature. These resources will be shared through a dedicated web site and an App, which will allow both visitors and citizens of Aberdeen to enjoy an interactive virtual or actual tour of the heritage landmarks. The finished website and App will be published in June 2012.

The Poems: Hen Utopia

The Poems: Hen Utopia (ISBN 978 1 870978 10 1 ) is a volume of poems written by Sheena Blackhall, published by Malfranteaux Concepts, Aberdeen, in October 2011, and printed by Thistle Reprographics. The Wickerman Moment appeared in 9/11-TEN (Malfranteaux Concepts, Aberdeen) & was performed at New Words 2011. The Haddo Mothers was written prior to appearing at the Doric Festival’s Chapel Service at Haddo (2011). The Gossiping Sacra Scriptura was written over the Poetry Scotland Weekend at King’s Bookshop, Callander. The Sacrist appears in storyform (spoken) on www.readingbus.co.uk under the Apardion section. Incomin won first prize for best Scots poem in the Wigtown Poetry Festival, 2011. Estranged, Not Home Now & On Death Row were written around the event Turning Point: Any Questions Panel chaired by Sir Kenneth Calman during the Scottish Mental Health Arts & Film Festival, Glasgow, October15th. The Singin Sycamore was published in the P&J by Robbie Shepherd. Others have already been published on http://www.poemhunter.com/sheena-blackhall.

The Poems: Bluid-Kin

Bluid-Kin: Poems in Scots and English by Sheena Blackhall. Published by Malfranteaux Concepts, Aberdeen. Printed by Thistle Reprographics, 55 Holburn Street Aberdeen
Cover: Sìne NicTheàrlaich.(2011) ISBN 978 1 870978 19 4. Bryan Sykes, professor of human genetics at Oxford University claims that everyone in Europe is descended from seven women, who arrived at different times during the last 45,000 years, to form clans that eventually became today's population. He concluded this by studying mitochondrial DNA, which is passed down from mothers to children.Haplogroup K appeared 16,000 years ago, as populations followed the retreating ice northward. Tests show that Oetzi, the 5,200-year-old remains of a Copper Age man frozen in an Alpine glacier, belongs to haplogroup K, the DNA grouping shared with the poet Sheena Blackhall. It is found in Britain, the Western European Alps, and 32% of Ashkenazi Jews. In Europe its frequency is 5.6%. By 1931, Ashkenazi Jews comprised nearly 92% of world Jewry. The eminent Jewish-Scottish scholar David Daiches stated that Scotland was the only European country which has no history of state persecution of Jews. Aberdeen and Dundee had links to Baltic port which had large Jewish populations; it’s probable that Jews came to Scotland to trade with their Scottish counterparts. Some of these poems have appeared in Enormities (Malfranteaux Concepts, Aberdeen, ISBN 978 1 870978 70 5). Others have already been published on http://www.poemhunter.com/sheena-blackhall. Two will feature in a forthcoming issue of Poetry Scotland (Callander). Half of this collection was written at Balquidder, Callander, the remainder at Oban and Mull.
 

The Short Stories:

The Chimaera Institute is a collection of seven tales by Sheena Blackhall, published as a limited edition in 2011 by Lochlands, Aberdeenshire, and printed by Thistle Reprographics. The cover is a copy of The Nightmare by Henry Fuseli (1741-1825).
The Nightmare contains significant elements of sleep paralysis and has become almost an icon for the phenomenon.
Most of the seven tales are loosely based on urban myths. Anecdote, rumour, gossip...urban myths can straddle all those categories. Often they are short, like fables and can be told quickly in a paragraph or two. The tales in this book draw from various sources. The Book of Nasty Legends by Paul Smith (Fontana Paperbacks 1984: ISBN 0-00-636856-5) is one source. Another is the late Stanley Robertson, who liked to tell a version of ‘The Bridge’ in the form of a joke. (Of course it has much darker possibilities.) Ghost tales collected from the Aberdeen area mention a servant sacked for the loss of a fiver, wrongly accused of theft who subsequently committed suicide, and this is woven into ‘The Keeper of the Kennels’.

The Poems:Crannog Woman

Crannog Woman,Poems in Scots & English is a limited edition and the 80th poetry pamphlet by Sheena Blackhall.It was published in June 2011 by Malfranteaux Concepts, Aberdeen (ISBN 978 1 870978 972) & printed by Thistle Reprographics. The cover is designed by Sìne NicTheàrlaich. Some of these poems were inspired by works in the Aberdeen Artists’ 2011 Exhibition, or in response to articles displayed in the Exhibition ‘100 Curiosities in King’s Museum’ which opened on 17th April 2011. Some of these poems have already been published on http://www.poemhunter.com/sheena-blackhall. A selection was performed at the Aberdeen University Word Festival in May 2011. Two or three were written as a result of historical research carried out by the poet for a forthcoming children’s book, Apardion, to be published by the Aberdeen Reading Bus in the autumn of 2011.The songs Versailles and The Neptune were written and performed during the Portsoy May Festival, 2011. Soroptimists was specially composed for the Soroptimist Society. The Liggers’ Stane was written to perform at the Aberdeen Town House at a conference concert to celebrate the Battle of Harlaw.The concluding poems are Scots owersets of various international poets.

The Bairn Books: Mr. Pavlova's Comb-Over

The Bairn Books: Mr Pavlova's Comb-Over (ISBN 978-O-9564837-7-5)is published by the Reading Bus. A Limited Edition has been printed by Thistle Reprographics, Aberdeen, however you can download your own free version of the book from the Reading Bus website, www.readingbus.co.uk. Look in the Books section. Download your own e-Pub for your mobile device by clicking here. Or copy and paste this link in the browser of your i-Pod, i-Phone or i-Pad https://files.me.com/readingbus/1lrxlx The book will open in i-books for you to enjoy.Or you can download the file as a PDF by clicking here Or copy and paste this link into the browser of your computer https://files.me.com/readingbus/3l4neb
Re. the theme of turtles,a poem for adults by Blackhall, The Flight of the Turtles will be published in New Writing Scotland 29.
Mr Pavlova's Comb-Over is illustrated by the poet under the name of Sine NicThearlaich.It was previewed at the University of Aberdeen's Word Festival in 2011To hear Blackhall discuss Doric with Jessie Kesson and Billie Kay, google-search Kay's Originals on You Tube.

The Poems: Census Matters

Census Matters ISBN 978 1 87098 83 5 Poems & Tales in Scots & English Published by Malfranteaux Concepts, Aberdeen Cover: Sìne NicTheàrlaich Cost: £3.00 Copyright: S. Blackhall 2011 Friday Tsunami is published in Poems in the Wind ISBN 978 1 870978 80 4 Published by Malfranteaux Concepts. Lumphanan’s Witches was written in response to a request by Duncan Lockerbie of Lumphanan Press, Roddenbrae, Lumphanan, for a poem to add to an anthology raising funds for the Lumphanan Heritage Society. http://www.poemhunter.com/sheena-blackhall. Four Doric poems, The Duchess o Richmond an Gordon, Roseile, Scolty, and Denlethen, were written to feature on panels erected by the Forestry Commission. The Fruit of Paradise and The Aipple were published in The Core 1SBN 978 1 870978 78 1 (Malfranteaux Concepts, 2011). Ballad is an owersett in Scots of a poem by John Clare. (An owersett in Scots of Clare’s poem November, appears in the 2010 Best Scottish Poems online, chosen by the editor Jen Hadfield. http://www.spl.org.uk/best-poems/index.htm The Lovers of Union Square appeared on Union Square’s Facebook and Twitter entries. It was specially written for their Valentine’s Event, 12/2/11. In the Room Next Door was published in Love Poems for Valentines, ISBN 978 1 870978 60 6, Malfranteaux Concepts 2011. Three poems were inspired by Under the Covers: Nursing the Soldiers of the Great War as part of ‘The Caring Profession’ project. Nurse Jeannie L. Daniel’s autograph book contains poems, epithets and sketches contributed by soldiers convalescing in Oldmill Hospital, Aberdeen (now Woodend) between 1917 and 1918. Blackhall was invited to participate in this project by Dr Colin MacDuff of RGU. Wame Mates & Le Temps Menaçant are published in Issue 10 Pushing Out the Boat, May 2011. Some of the poems were produced by Blackhall in her capacity as Makar of Aberdeen & North East Scotland. For a comprehensive list of Sheena Blackhall’s work, see http://sheenablackhall.blogspot.com. Finally, thanks are due to Thistle Reprographics for their expertise and speed in producing the book itself and to Malfranteaux Concepts for publishing it.

Poetry Pamphlet no 78 May 2011

The Poems

The Berserker:Poems in Scots & English Published by Lochlands, Maud, Aberdeenshire
Printed by Thistle Reprographics, 55 Holburn Street Aberdeen Cover:Lewis Chessman ‘The Berserker’ drawn by Sìne NicTheàrlaich Cost: £3.99 Copyright: S.Blackhall 2011. An English version of ‘The Pirate’ appears in ‘Happily Ever After: A Creative Collection, Forword Press ISBN-10: 184418563X, 2011, (a children’s anthology). ‘The Wids o Clune’ was written for the Pitcowdens Project. ‘The Devil’s Right Hand Man’ is published online: (http://www.scottishbooktrust.com/family-legends/stories/author). ‘Bus Jaunt from Ho Chi Minh’ was written after a trip to Cambodia.

The Bairn Books

The Bairn Books:Millie (ISBN 978-0-9564837-4-4) is a bairn-book written in Doric by Sheena Blackhall and illustrated by Bob Dewar. The book is edited by Bill Burnett and was published by the Reading Bus (Aberdeen) in 2010, as part of a team project managed by Jenny Watson . Ian Hudghton MEP contributed the foreword. The book has its own website, http://web.me.com/readingbus/Millie, which will eventually have sound translations in 30 different languages from around the world. Blackhall contributed to previous Reading Bus publications, the anthologies ‘Fit Like Yer Majesty’ and ‘Nae Bad Ava’.
Working as Storyteller & poet on the Reading Bus, she has also assisted pupils, storytellers and artists in the following team projects:
Titanic:ISBN. 9780951137377 (Cornhill Primary 2007)
The Chief o Mounthooley’s Kilt: ISBN 978-0-9558904-3-7 (Causewayend Primary 2008)
Crocorattie: ISBN 978-0-9558904-4-4 9 (Donbank Primary 2008)
Rockraptor: ISBN -978-0-9558904-6-8 (Kittybrewster Primary 2009)
Loch Ness Monster ISBN-978-0-9558904-5-1 (Cornhill Primary 2008)
Aul Aiberdeen ISBN 978-0-9564837-1-3 (Cornhill Primary 2009)
The Woodcarvers of King’s College Chapel ISBN 978-0-9564837-2-0 (Woodside Primary 2009)
Wishes and Legends: Stories & Springboards (2010)

The Poems: The Caledonian Anaconda

The Caledonian Anaconda (ISBN 978 1 870978 83 5) was published by Malfranteaux Concepts (46 Portal Crescent Aberdeen AB24 2SP)in 2010, and printed by Thistle Reprographics, 55 Holburn Street Aberdeen. Some of the English poems appear online at http://www.poemhunter.com/sheena-blackhall. Other poems will appear in The World is your Oyster: published by the Forward Press ISBN 9781844185566. The Flicht o the Fite Moch won the Hugh MacDiarmid Trophy in the Sangshaw 2010 competition. The Tree o Life was awarded third prize in the Sangshaw short story competition. Hector the Hoolet & Anely an Act o God were both highly commended in the prose section. Fulfilling part of Blackhall's commitments as Makar of Aberdeen & the North East, two of the songs were specially written for the Gallowgate Doric Celebration, in the 2010 Doric Festival. Another two songs were composed and performed at Gadiefest 2010The wartime poems were written for the Malfranteaux publication, Enough (Nov. 2010) featuring poems by a number of poets. Other pieces will appear in the spring of 2011 in Poems in the Wind,(Malfranteaux publication) featuring a selection of poets. The Twa Faces Bride is published in Causeway Issue No 2, 2010. Some of the material in this pamphlet will feature in Lallans 77.

The Songs: Volume III

Sangs &Poems for Bairns: Volume III was compiled in part as a result of Blackhall’s outreach role as Creative Writer in Scots at the Elphinstone Institute (www.abdn.ac.uk/elphinstone/kist )led by Dr Ian Russell.During this time she visited over 200 schools. Her work promoting Scots with children continues, working for Jenny Watson on www.readingbus.co.uk. The photograph of the poet was taken by her daughter, Kenna Blackhall in 2009 when she was created Makar of the North East of Scotland.

The Songs: Volume II

Sangs & Poems Volume II contains material Blackhall has performed in Washington, Sidmouth, Gadiefest etc. She has twice won the Press & Journal trophy for best traditional singer, and twice won the Joe Leonard trophy for best song written in the traditional style. (Her grandfather, Alexander Middleton wrote Cornkisters in the Deeside area). In 2001 she won best overall newcomer in the TMSA competition. For some years she competed at the Mod with the Aberdeen Gaelic Choir.Cuthbert Graham described her as 'The Singing Poet'. He also described the North East as 'The Singing Land.'