"A Cold Wind From The Lake: New and Selected Poems," by Kevin McManus (Review 2)

"A Cold Wind From The Lake: New and Selected Poems," by Kevin McManus was published in December 2024 with an updated volume in June 2025 here at ShadowScript Publications.

I'd like to focus in this second review post on aspects of home/belonging and displacement whilst again touching off some of the themes I reviewed in my last critique.

The poet comprehensively explores the concept of home and belonging, presenting it not merely as a physical location but as a complex interplay of personal history, ancestral ties, memory, and emotional connection, often tinged with loss and the struggle for a sense of place.

Here are the key ways the book explores this concept:

Home as a Personal and Familial Legacy: The dedication itself establishes a familial connection to the author's father, Kevin McManus (1939-2024). The poem "In your shadow, I walk" directly links the concept of home to the presence and memory of a father, where his boots "held the shape of him" and the spade leans idle, rough as his hand once was. The father's wisdom, a "baritone" and "low song of his unspoken care," advises, "Keep the ground close, boy, It will hold you when I cannot," suggesting that the land is a foundational aspect of belonging, even after death. What evocative writing!

The Pain of Emigration and Displacement:

Forced Departure: "The bridge of sorrows" vividly portrays the anguish of leaving Donegal, with "mother's cries upon the bridge" haunting emigrants in their new lives. This underscores home as a place of profound emotional attachment, the severance from which causes lasting pain.

Struggle and Loss Abroad: Poems like "North wall" depict the difficult reality of Irish emigrants rebuilding post-war London, where "days blurred into nights in the haze of smoky bars". Home becomes "not a place, but a tapestry woven from the threads of half-forgotten memories," indicating an internal shift in the concept of home when the physical one is left behind. I know this is a theme Kevin has returned to in his recent writing.

Lingering Displacement: "Lost souls" describes a man who left Mayo for London, facing hardships and eventually succumbing to alcohol, unable to return home for holidays or funerals, his "dreams of a long-gone family" persisting in doss houses. This portrays a tragic loss of belonging, where the emigrant is neither fully at home in the new land nor able to return to the old.

Ambiguous Homecoming: The conversation in "Sacred Heart" between a visitor and his brother, with questions like "Are you home for long?" and "Come home to what? Where is that?" highlights the complex and often painful reality that even returning physically does not guarantee a return to a lost sense of belonging.

Home as Memory and the Weight of the Past:

Fading Memories: "Like dust in the wind" describes a childhood departure, a scene replayed "over and over again until the picture would finally fade," emphasising how memories of home, though cherished, can be lost to time.

Haunting Absence: "Lost places" describes a house where "childish laughter echoed through its halls" and "secrets shared at the fire," which eventually becomes "no longer a home" due to emigration and abandonment. The absence of people transforms the physical structure, demonstrating how belonging is tied to shared human experience.

Loneliness of a Lost Home: In "A Winter's Tale," an old man returns to a home devoid of loved ones, finding "no cards upon the floor" and only "photos of loved ones no longer there," illustrating that home is profoundly defined by the presence of people. "A distant prayer" similarly shows a man lost in a London pub, haunted by "memories of home," reinforcing that belonging is often tied to people and past moments.

Decay and No Redemption: "No redemption" paints a stark picture of a dilapidated home and barren land, a "place where love was lost, and hope was torn and exiled". The decay of the physical space mirrors the internal desolation, suggesting that some homes are beyond repair, and the land itself can embody pain and decay, offering no solace or belonging.

Home as a Sanctuary and Source of Solace:

Quiet Respite: "Querencia" evokes a serene connection to a garden and land, treasuring "the evanescent time we shared," implying that home is a place of peace and cherished moments.

Intellectual and Emotional Comfort: "The bookshop" is described as a "sanctuary from the storm," where one can "lose oneself" in the "warm word embrace," suggesting that belonging can also be found in spaces that offer intellectual and emotional comfort, providing a temporary escape from the "daily grind".

Resilience and Light in Darkness: In "In the deep dark Winter," the instruction to "keep the light within, hang on to each other, carry each other through, find the pathway home" implies that home and belonging can be maintained through community, resilience, and inner strength during difficult times. The "Candle" in the window serves as a "beacon for the lost and the alone," symbolising hope and guidance for those seeking a sense of home.

Rootedness in Place: "On Garadice shore" concludes with a desire "to try and make sense of self, to be rooted to this old ground on a lake shore," explicitly stating the yearning for a firm sense of belonging to a specific place.

-Niall MacGiolla Bhuí, PhD ©