Treasuring Poetry – Meet poet and author V.M. Sang and a review #poetry #poetrycommunity #bookreview
Posted: April 16, 2025 Filed under: Book Review, Books, Poetry, Review, Treasuring Poetry | Tags: January to June, Poetry, Robbie Cheadle, Treasuring Poetry, V.M. Sang, Writing to be Read 74 Comments
Today, I am delighted to Welcome V.M. Sang, author and poet, as my April Treasuring Poetry guest.
Welcome Viv!
Thank you, Robbie, for inviting me to come and chat about poetry. I am honoured that you asked me.
What is your favourite style of poetry to read?
I enjoy Haiku and Tanka. I appreciate the structure and the work that goes in to make the syllables fit. But I also enjoy sonnets.
What is your favourite poem in your favourite style to read?
I struggled with this. There are so many I enjoy. I like the 1st World War poets and their take on the war. Particularly poignant are the two lines from Yeates An Irish Airman Forsees His Death.
Those that I fight I do not hate
Those that I guard I do not love.
But one poem I’ve loved since studying it at College is the sonnet, Ozymandias, by Percy Bysshe Shelley. It is a warning to all who strive to get above themselves. I think it is particularly pertinent at this time.
Ozymandias
by Percy Bysshe Shelley
I met a traveller from an antique land,
Who said, “Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal these words appear:
‘My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!’
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that Colossal Wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.”
What is your favourite style of poetry to write?
I enjoy writing most forms, but particularly those with a strict form, like the sonnet and the Japanese forms, but I especially like to write rhyming poetry. I know it’s not fashionable at the moment, but I find the discipline a challenge. Discovering words with the right sound and number of syllables can be quite a challenge.
What is your favourite of your own poems?
I have to admit that there are two, both related. ‘I Am Earth’ appears in my first poetry book, Miscellaneous Thoughts, and the second one ‘I Am Earth 2’ is in From January to June, February 7th.
I Am Earth
I am Earth.
I am your mother.
I gave you birth.
I gave you a nest.
A wonderful home
On which you can rest.
I gave you food .
Plenty to eat.
You waste all that’s good.
I gave you the seas
And forests and hills,
But you chop down the trees.
You think you’re so cool,
But you pollute the air
By the burning of fuel.
You heat up the air
And care not a jot
For the poor polar bear.
Animals die
Because of your greed.
You hear not their cry.
I teemed with life,
Both great and small,
Yet extinction is rife.
Like a cancer you spread
Throughout the whole world.
It won’t end till you’re dead.
But I’ll make you pay
For all you have done.
You’ll be sorry one day.
I’ll shiver my skin.
Your buildings will fall
And bury your kin.
The land I will flood
By raising the seas
And drown all in mud.
My mountains so high
Will belch forth their flames
And you will all die.
I am Earth.
I am your mother.
I gave you birth.
BUT I WILL DESTROY YOU.
I Am Earth (2)
I am Earth.
I am your mother
I gave you birth.
I told you
What will occur.
And now you will rue.
You ignore me
And take little heed
Of my anxious plea.
So I send you rain
To flood all your homes
And give you pain.
I send the drought
So no crops will grow.
There’s famine, no doubt.
I heat the world
And many will die
From the heat I have hurled.
Winds I will send
In hurricanes now.
Your lands they will rend.
Yet you will not learn.
To me you are deaf
So the world I will burn.
Fires in the summer;
Deep snow in the cold.
You get dumber and dumber.
My skin I do shiver
And make buildings fall
As the ground it does quiver.
I will belch forth fire
From deep in my heart.
Make Earth like a pyre.
Will you now learn?
Don’t exploit my wealth.
Or you I will burn.
I AM DESTROYING YOU.
Please tell us about your poetry books, One Poem A Day Series? How did this book come about? It is a big commitment to write a poem a day.
My daughter, when she was little, had a bedtime story book with a very short story or a little poem for each day of the year. It was amazing because when she asked for more, as children will, I could say that the next poem or story was tomorrow’s.
For some reason I found myself thinking about this book one day. I’ve no idea why. It was decades ago when she was so small.
Then I thought, “Why not try to write one poem each day for a year, just like that book.” So that’s how it began.
It was quite difficult. Some days I had no inspiration and had to search for it. Other days I just didn’t feel like writing.
The discipline was good for me. I tend to be a procrastinator. There were some days when I couldn’t write due to circumstances, but I caught up by writing two poems until I was back on track.
My review of From January to June (One Poem A Day Series Book 1)
I enjoyed this collection of poetry very much. It is very British in its content and language and the poems reminded me of the stories of my mother has told me of her childhood growing up in a small town in Suffolk, UK. The references and descriptions are all familiar to me and reading this book was like putting on a comfortable dressing gown.
The style of the poems is varied from freestyle, to rhyming verse, to syllabic poetry and I enjoyed this aspect. There were also several limericks to make the reader smile. The content is also wide ranging from nature, to a Roman gods theme, to friends and family. The poems are grouped by month and tell a story of the poet’s daily experiences during that month in terms of the environment, the holidays, and entertainment.
A few of my favourite poems with a short synopsis:
Grown Up – a fun poem asking about why the poet should do certain expected things in order to be deemed grown up;
The Peacock – a delightful descriptive poem of a male peacock;
Destruction – a sad commentary of the damage humans have, and continue to, inflict on the planet;
The Fishmonger’s – a delicious commentary on the yummy seafood enjoyed by the poet;
Robin – a gorgeous depiction of a robin in the poet’s garden;
Starlings – a tanka about a murmuration of starlings going to roost;
Tea – a poem about English tea;
Blackpool – a comparative poem between the Blackpool of the poet’s childhood memories and the modern Blackpool;
Mum – a very special tribute to the poet’s mother;
Boudicca – a poem about this famous historical queen. I was interested to note that the name of this woman has been changed from Boudicea which is the name my mom always calls her. It cleared up a confusion for me;
Son – a delightful poem about the poet’s son;
Rainbow – an interesting and unique take on the colours of the rainbow;
Spring cleaning – an entertaining take on spring cleaning which is very familiar to me;
I am a Writer – a poem about why the poet writes. I always enjoy peeks into why poets and authors write;
True Love – a romantic poem about a lost love;
Teddy – a delightful poem about the poet’s teddy bear from childhood. I also had mine until recently;
Fickle Muse – a commentary about when the words don’t come;
Gardens, I’ll quote this short poem:
“Gardens are bits of heaven
Fallen from above.
Gardeners are angels
Tending them with love.”
Ode to Beer – an amusing poem about the historical and modern joys of beer;
The Village Green – my personal favourite in this collection. A poem about British communal life;
This is a delightful collection that really warmed my heart.
You can purchase From January to June (One Poem A Day Series Book 1) from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CNW1NQPZ
And from Amazon UK here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/January-June-One-Poem-Day/dp/482418892X
About V.M. Sang
V.M. Sang was born and lived her early life in Cheshire in the north west of England. She has always loved books and reading and learned to read before she went to school.
During her teenage years she wrote some poetry, one of which was published in Tecknowledge,the magazine of the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST). Unfortunately, that is the only one that is still around.
V.M. Sang became a teacher and taught English and Science at her first school.
She did little writing until starting to teach in Croydon, Greater London. Here she started a Dungeons and Dragons club in the school where she was teaching. She decided to write her own scenario. The idea of turning it into a novel formed but she did nothing about it until she took early retirement. Then she began to write The Wolves of Vimar Series.
Walking has always been one of V.M. Sang’s favourite pastimes, having gone on walking holidays in her teens. She met her husband walking with the University Hiking Club, and they still enjoy walking on the South Downs.
V.M.Sang also enjoys a variety of crafts, such as card making, tatting, crochet, knitting etc. She also draws and paints.
V.M.Sang is married with two children, a girl and a boy. Her daughter has three children and she loves to spend time with them.
She now lives in East Sussex with her husband.
Find V.M. Sang
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/23500375-vivienne-sang
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/sang0566/
Amazon Author Profile: http://viewauthor.at/VMSang
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Carthinal/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/v.m.sang/
Bluesky: @aspholessaria.bsky.social
Find V.M. Sang’s books
FANTASY
The Wolves of Vimar series.
The Wolf Pack https://books2read.com/u/m0lxEy
The Never-Dying Man https://books2read.com/u/3R6ozR
Wolf Moon https://books2read.com/u/mvWjXe
The Wolves of Vimar prequels.
Jovinda and Noli
https://books2read.com/u/mgjrO0
The Making of a Mage
https://books2read.com/u/mddNNO
Dreams of an Elf Maid
https://books2read.com/u/4ElDZg
Horselords:
https://books2read.com/u/31XQ0a
Elemental Worlds duo.
The Stones of Earth and Air
https://books2read.com/u/mYygKV
The Stones of Fire and Water
https://books2read.com/u/brwoVE
Historical Fiction
A Family Through the Ages
Vengeance of a Slave
https://books2read.com/u/3kLZxR
Jealousy of a Viking
https://books2read.com/u/bMYGKk
POETRY BOOKS
Miscellaneous Thoughts.
January to June. One Poem a Day. Book 1
https://books2read.com/u/bx6azJ
July to December. One Poem a Day. Book 2
https://books2read.com/u/3kXvDR
Non-Fiction
Viv’s Family Recipes
https://books2read.com/u/mVR7dM
All the books are available in many formats, including audio for several of them.
About Robbie Cheadle
South African author and illustrator, Robbie Cheadle, has written and illustrated sixteen children’s books, illustrated a further three children’s books, and written and illustrated three poetry books. Her work has also appeared in poetry and short story anthologies.
Robbie also has two novels and a collection of short stories published under the name of Roberta Eaton Cheadle and has horror, paranormal, and fantasy short stories featured in several anthologies under this name.
You can find Robbie Cheadle’s artwork, fondant and cake artwork, and all her books on her website here: https://www.robbiecheadle.co.za/
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This segment of “Treasuring Poetry” is sponsored by WordCrafter Press and the Poetry Treasures series.
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Poetry Treasures: https://books2read.com/PoetryTreasures
Poetry Treasures 2: Relationships: https://books2read.com/PT2-Relationships
Poetry Treasures 3: Passions: https://books2read.com/u/b5qnBR
Poetry Treasures 4:In Touch With Nature: https://books2read.com/PT4-Nature
