Joseph Hutchison enjoys some extraordinary restraint

“Just a note here about a slim Salt Publishing publication I recently read, Siân Hughes's The Missing. The Missing is a first book, but it's author is no novice at life.”

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Peter McLachlin celebrates Hughes’s use of idiom

“Siân Hughes’ use of idiomatic language is superb, and often has the effect of lulling the reader into a feeling of the quotidian, leaving him or her unprepared for the poem’s ending.”

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Tony Williams on Siân Hughes

“Towards the end of last week I read Sian Hughes's The Missing, shortlisted for this year's Forward Prize for Best First Collection. I haven't read the other books on the shortlist so I can't comment on who should win, but I can say that this one's really good – a brief, affecting, plain and magnificent book. Read it if you get the chance.”

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Matthew Stewart on Siân Hughes

“For once, a collection outdoes its blurb - as mentioned in a previous post, "The Missing" is an exceptional book in the context of contemporary U.K. poetry.

“Siân Hughes' subject matters in "The Missing" are signposted from the start. Her lost third child and the end of a relationship are themes that run though the book. "The Send-Off", for example, is a superb poem and a winner of the Arvon Prize. Its value lies in peeling layer after layer off a story, telling it through details, encouraging us to explore and identify ourselves with it. This last point is a key success - Siân Hughes engages us incredibly well.”

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Siân Hughes longlisted for The Guardian First Book Award

The only poetry on the longlist is The Missing by Siân Hughes, a collection that deals with parenting, illness, loss, regret and ill-fated love.

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Siân Hughes shortlisted for the Felix Dennis Best First Collection Prize

Siân Hughes has been shortlisted for the Felix Dennis Best First Collection Prize in the 2009 Forward Prizes for her collection The Missing.

Touching the Sky, at Kings Place, Mon 20 Oc

Touching the Sky, at Kings Place, Mon 20 Oct

A spectacular event celebrating the opening of the new Kings Place building, new home of the Guardian and Observer newspapers. Featuring Sir Jeremy Dixon, the architect of Kings Place, Sunand Prasad President of the Royal Institute of British Architects, and the distinguished poets Paul Farley, Simon Barraclough and Jacob Sam-La Rose.

The event will be chaired by Jonathan Glancey, The Guardian’s architecture correspondent. Tickets priced £9.50 available from www.kingsplace.co.uk