The Ringing Rock

Scottish Contemporary Poets

by Valerie Gillies

Intensely culture-based poems, often inspired by paintings and sculpture, at other times shaped by a rich and potent history.

54 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1990

About the author

Valerie Gillies, née Simmons, (b. 1948) is a Canadian-born poet who grew up in Southern Scotland. She has an MA and an MLitt from the University of Edinburgh, where she wrote her thesis on William Drummond’s Flowres of Sion. She was also a Commonwealth Scholar at the University of Mysore in India, which has continued to have an important impact on her poetry. She is married to William Gillies, Professor Emeritus of Celtic Languages and Literature at Edinburgh University, with whom she has three children, and they live in Edinburgh.

Gillies was the second Edinburgh Makar (Edinburgh's poet laureate) from 2005 to 2008. She has also written for literary and arts reviews, BBC radio and television, the theatre as well as worked with visual artists and musicians. She has also taught creative writing extensively.

Along with Will Maclean, William and Valerie Gillies collaborated on St. Kilda Waulking Song (1998), which features the poem by the same name in its original Gaelic and in a contemporary translation.

Reviews

[Myranda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume of poetry would suit those looking for an exploration of location, with more focus on form and language than a deep dive into a theme or emotion. There were a few poems where I felt a glimmer of something more, something deeper, but mostly I didn't find it particularly moving or thought-provoking. It might be more so to someone more steeped in Scotland and Scottish history than I am.