This is a witty, funny, barbed piece of iconoclasm about emotional double dealing and hypocrisy, of superficial materialism and skewed values and the tragicomic ending of a long established relationship. It's a sharp, trenchant parody set in a milieu of the inescapable expectational norm of profit.

For the past twenty years Alan Dent's caustic, witty, polemical, enthusiastic and highly individual reviews of modern poetry have been the most eagerly read section of his magazines The Penniless Press and Mistress Quickly's Bed. Few critics can boast of having a poem written about their activity (Dentistry by Edward MacKinnon), but it isn't surprising Dent has: he may divide opinion, but he is always memorable and never afraid of making enemies ( at least the right ones). This volume contains all his poetry reviews since 1995 together with a few longer pieces. Follow the thread of their...