O Positive

‘This slim volume is the debut poetry collection from the author of Submarine and The Adulterants. Dunthorne’s poems, with titles like ‘I wanted to see how unhappy I could get’, are poignant snapshots of modern life – funny, but in a sad sort of way. There are poems about rejection and insecurity, owls and idiot balloonists, and always giving The Signs of Saturn as a calculated gift. There are surprising shifts and moments of tenderness, and every now and then come bursts of joy – like water bombs at a garden party where no one gets along.’

[Dunthorne's] debut collection has been keenly awaited. [He] has a comic sensibility with a touch of the bizarre and a keen eye for the foibles of modern life.

‘Joe Dunthorne is best known as the author of Submarine (2008), a coming-of-age novel that was adapted for film by Richard Ayoade. But Dunthorne was a poet first. O Positive brims with a mix of faux urbanity and kooky insouciance. Child-thieving owls, deranged hypnotists and melodramatic actors waltz through the book’s bright pages, in which emotion is offset by hipster cool: “I decided to stop therapy / because I was perfect”. At its self-knowing best, O Positive entertains and challenges, but it is also content to impress, “forever calculating / how to present myself”.’

‘A superbly economical writer . . . comedy is always balanced by insight and poignancy.’

‘[Dunthorne’s] poetry is outstanding. From the first quatrains we know we are in safe hands.’