Piecing Together

'David Scott belongs firmly to the long tradition of parson-poets that goes back at least as far as George Herbert...For all their reticence, there is a compassion in these poems and a sense of propriety' - norman nicholson Springing from ordinary events, or a picture, or an aspect of the priestly life, David Scott's beautifully restrained poems work up the detail into a moment of significance. They are rooted in an English culture which is found not only in locality, but also in understatement, and the sideways look. But his poetry has wider reverberations, exploring spirituality and ways of praying as well as momentary glimpses of meaning caught in everyday life. 'He is interested in the humble epiphanies associated with weathered objects and places: he seizes on the apparently insignificant but his sensual expansions are religious in tone. Quietly Scott's poems look out beyond themselves.' - George Szirtes, Critical Quarterly 'It is poetry that lives in the world...Scott feels absolutely no need to impress, it seems. His underplayed approach, disguising the subtle orchestration of mood, enables him to move from small matters to the brink of our ultimate concerns.' - Sean O'Brien, Northern Review 'Immaculate poems...full of gentle, contemplative intelligence and a tenacious modesty...scrupulous, affectionate.' - John Mole, Encounter