Five Leaves Publications

Book details

Sue Forrester's debut pamphlet, Familiar Phantoms, shows us a long life: family, friends, events at home and abroad - some remarkable, many everyday, even commonplace. With characteristic objectivity and perceptiveness she distils the residue of their reality to acknowledge their essence, their influence, and their enduring presence.

There are many different phantoms in Sue Forrester’s beautiful pamphlet: herself as a child, her lover, her parents and her aunt, and all are summoned with love and delicacy. There’s a matter-of-factness in her writing about loss which makes for some touching poems about death and the afterlife. She writes beautifully about female friendship, and there's humour, too. I enjoyed the company of Familiar Phantoms and highly recommend it. -- Carole Bromley

About the Author

Sue Forrester has worked as a public analyst, a tax officer, and a teacher of Biology, preparation for childbirth, and French. Her writing has been published in Reach magazine, anthologies of poetry and short stories, and online. She was awarded first prize n the 2017 Derby Book Festival Flash Fiction competition, shortlisted in the 2017 Grey Hen Press Poetry Competition, and won 3rd Prize in the 2018 Settle Sessions Poetry Competition. She is active in the East Midlands poetry community and performs her work regularly. London-bred, Sue lives in the Derbyshire Dales and dreams of the sea.