Emblem
‘These are surreal, startling poems that shift our understanding of what language might be able to express.’
– The Guardian
‘Mercer presses upon language in such a way as to make it shimmer, or blink, or stagger. … It’s an enormously satisfying collection, each poem singing on its own and speaking to the others as they go.’
– Poetry Review
‘Mercer’s Emblem is less interested in stable moral meanings … than in moments of uncertainty and unsettled perception… There is a Rorschach quality to these poems. … Mercer follows the nudges of the unconscious wherever they lead, to thrilling effect.’
– PBS Summer Bulletin
A Poetry Book Society Choice, and a Book of the Year in The New Statesman, The White Review and Frieze.