We've all heard of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, but reading the new Seamus Heaney book, District and Circle, it struck me it might be time for a Reduced Heaney equivalent. True to its Tube-themed title, not a few poems in District and Circle make for slow commutes with a few too many stops along the way for comfort. Here are my Reduced Heaney versions:
A Shiver
Hammers: aren't they just great for hitting things very hard? They most certainly are.
To Pablo Neruda in Tamlaghtduff
I may name-check Pablo Neruda but I'm still the same country boy I've always been. Neruda/still the same country boy. Neruda/still the same country boy.
The Tollund Man in Springtime
That body in the bog in Denmark is still there. Scary! But reassuring too.
A Clip
As well as farmers, thatchers and blacksmiths when I was young there were also barbers. Bless that barber.
Out of this World
Good old Czeslaw, he loved all that mystical Catholic stuff. I love it too. Even if it's not actually true.
District and Circle
I take the tube. But I'm still a country lad at heart.
Reduced Reduced Heaney: wait for the paperback.
1 comment:
Excellent. Very funny.
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