August’s Monthly Stories and Poems

‘Sometimes we can return home and find that it no longer holds the familiarity or reassurance that might once have been there. It can feel uncomfortable to notice that change. But in this poem although things no longer feel the same, there is an openness to what is left.’ This reflection by Grace, Shared Reading Practice and Support Manager at The Reader, sets the tone for this month’s selection of poems and stories, which are all different accounts of people returning home. ‘Home’ in some of these pieces is an ancestral one, other pieces tell more of an emotional homecoming, a return to one’s self, or to a state of peace, safety or thankfulness. There are also tales here of trickier homecomings, when home has become dangerous or unwelcoming, or simply doesn’t feel like home anymore. There are two extracts from novels on this year’s Reader Bookshelf – Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, and Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi, as well as an extract from The Odyssey, which was a previous year’s Bookshelf choice and coincides with the new adaptation for the big screen.

August’s selections are:

Stories & extracts

‘Marjorie’: an extract from Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

‘Be Not Forgetful to Entertain Strangers’: an extract from The Odyssey by Homer, translated by E.V. Rieu

‘Fleeing Temptation’: an extract from Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, translated by Constance Garnett

‘And the Sky Also is Different’: an extract from The Return of the Soldier by Rebecca West

Poetry

‘The Return of Odysseus’ by George Bilgere

‘Safe Sounds’ by Carol Ann Duffy

‘The Door Was Open and the House Was Dark’ by Seamus Heaney

‘Coming Back’ by Stephen Romer

‘Love After Love’ by Derek Walcott

By Frances Macmillan (Literature Engagement Lead at The Reader)