Erica Hesketh – författare

___‘Beautifully told, evocative tales that capture the wonder of winter and bring Japanese folklore to life.’ Dee Dee Chainey‘The perfect companion for a winter’s evening... I loved this invitation to snuggle down and explore the lands of frozen waterfalls and tundra, of the full moon and blossom, of mountains and snowfall.’ Bernadette Russell___ Winter in Japan. A time to gather and delight in the ancient tales of mountain spirits and restless ghosts; to wash away the old year and usher in the new. From wondrous creation myths to stories of eerie fox-fires, frost-bitten legends of the deep north to tales of foolhardy fishermen off the southern coast, join Erica Hesketh and Laura Sampson on a journey through deep drifts of Japanese heritage and culture. 'These sumptuous folk tales are full of wit, wisdom and 気 – life energy... They will make you shiver, ponder, and belly laugh... Essential bedtime reading.’ Alexandra Corrin-Tachibana

Erica Hesketh’s debut collection In the Lily Room tells a story of early motherhood. It examines a new mother’s journey through mental illness, her relationships with her body, her baby and other people, and the often surreal landscape of mothering, against a backdrop of a changing and uncertain world.A dreamlike birth sequence full of eels, foxes and floodwater empties onto a London postnatal ward, where reality sets in. Rudderless and anxious, the new mother writes notes to herself, joins support groups and tries medication. She climbs into myth and prayer, nightmare and song, criss-crossing her neighbourhood with a pram, until she starts to feel better. Hesketh's poems speak of the many things motherhood can mean, the structures it is made to fit inside. Clear-eyed and full of hard-won love, this a story of one of the most common experiences there is, told in a dazzlingly original way.