Yes we’ve had the Copper Canyon Press edition in holdings since April but it’s time to celebrate the UK publication of these formally innovative and rivetingly queer poems by Jericho Brown. Writing as a lover, as a family member, as a loner, as a body, as an African American citizen, as a worker, as a victim, and as a survivor, this is very much a book from the United States of America today but its themes are universal: Dallas is so far even for the people who live in Dallas. The Tradition is Poetry Book Society choice for Autumn 2019 and it contains the tenderest, saddest, funniest poem ever written about rabbits and a breathtakingly beautiful cover image by (Dallas-based) artist Ralphi Burgess. What more do you want?

Feeling like you are living in your very own contemporary dystopia hurtling towards crisis? Try this punchy pink pamphlet from Brighton-based transgender poet Rumfitt. It thrillingly dissects present-day trans and female experience, combines it with anxieties over climate change, and maps it all onto the fictional world of Gilead from Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale.

This month we’ve received a bumper crop of children’s books to refresh the shelves for autumn, including a new book by Rug Rhymes favourite Emily Gravett. We adore Gravett’s Monkey and Me and her latest Cyril and Pat doesn’t disappoint. Cyril the squirrel makes friends with Pat who Cyril has mistaken for a squirrel but is actually a… We won’t spoil the surprise! A funny and touching rhyming text accompanied by Gravett’s quirky and warm illustration style that make you wish for a friend like Pat.

Rug Rhymes returns on Friday 13 September at 10.30am.