Echolocation

Echolocation is my first poetry pamphlet. It explores topics of single motherhood, infertility and the adoption process. The pamphlet was released in February 2016 with Mother’s Milk Books. You can buy the book here or a PDF version here.

Reader comments

‘Becky Cherriman’s Echolocation is a stridently assured body of work that negotiates the tethers binding mother and child. Infertility, fostering and single motherhood are encountered and marked by those elements of love that exist within the interstices of domestic spaces and everyday life: the remnant of smells and ghosts within the folds of a blanket, a child as its mother’s ‘first accurate mirror’. The improbability of existence is at the heart of the work; nothing is taken for granted, and motherhood is considered the beginning of an energized attentiveness. A powerful pamphlet that both enthrals and inspires, Echolocation is not to be missed.’ (Carolyn Jess-Cooke)

‘An impressive first pamphlet which does not succumb to mawkish sentimentality, Echolocation displays some startling and original imagery.’ (Michael Brown)

‘ …challenging, in its topics which include infertility, fostering and single motherhood, in its sharply-honed language, in its uncompromising approach.’ (Annie Hughes)

‘This pamphlet, beautifully produced by Mother’s Milk Books, is a delight. I read it in one sitting but will be going back to savour its imagery and crafting in the future.’ (Angela Topping)

‘In ‘Building Castles’ we hear the hollow promises made before a relationship fails. When we hear the powerful words, ‘You could have my baby’, it sounds so speculative, combined with (in my eyes) a strange dichotomy of power, that though the words appear soft and caring, you can’t help but see the end before the end, when ‘Round and round you rubbed / before you left me.’  (Caroline Hardaker)

‘The connection between parent and child goes much deeper than physical contact, comings and goings, the daily round of co-existing. This is echolocation within the human psyche. This pamphlet may be pocket-sized but Cherriman impresses with a wide range of emotions, some uplifting, some negative: happiness; sorrow; hope; pessimism; and ultimately, optimism, everything that a parent experiences. (John Murphy)

‘I enjoy various kinds of poetry – but just occasionally, I read something that grips me from start to finish, cannot be put down, and will be read and re-read. Echolocation comes into the latter category. As a poet myself, I’m sick with envy that such marvellous stuff is possible…My only gripe with this is that I’d have liked it to be longer! A perfect jewel of a pamphlet. Book next, Ms Cherriman, please.’ (Cathy J. Bryant)