William Blake and the Sea Monsters of Love
Art, Poetry, and the Imagining of a New World

A kaleidoscopic, dream-like foray into the art and poetry of William Blake, and a whole raft of artists who have taken inspiration from him over the years. Hoare's prose is as fluid and dense and changeable as the sea he uses as his central motif: it's compelling but I did wish he'd give me a chance......more

I can't really begin to describe this book. If anything it's more like an account of a man being haunted by William Blake and an exploration of other men who have been similarly afflicted. It has no real linear movement, no timeline and no adherence to anything much earthly except that the words are......more

This was a marathon read. About William Blake and the many people influenced by his visions which most of his works actually were. It seemed his day to day existence was like living in a drug induced nightmare or sometimes maybe euphoria. Perhaps both simultaneously. I can’t say I got to understand......more

What to say about this book. I think it’s the closest I’ve ever come to experiencing art through someone else’s eyes and emotions. Hoare grabs you at the start, and he doesn’t let you go. It’s like being pulled into the sea, and then underneath the waves. It makes no sense and perfect sense. I am no......more

This book holds out sea monsters in its title. It then starts off with an account of the author swimming in the ocean. I could not help immediately think about the Iris Murdoch novel The Sea, the Sea. That novel tells of a superannuated thespian who retires to the coast and swims in the sea. There h......more