In A True Prize, John Goodby combines wit, virtuosity and a robust intelligence with biographical openness in a way that constantly confounds the reader’s expectations.

Formally more traditional than some of his previous offerings, the book has a richness and a variousness of theme and approach which together add up to a satisfying and intriguing collection of poetry.

"Goodby’s mastery of the verse-line is amply and consistently demonstrated thoughout this volume, his phrasing and his fusing of form, idea and perception are always sparky and startling, usually inarguable and very often electrifying."
Lyndon Davies

John Goodby was born in Kingstanding, Birmingham, in 1958. His poems have appeared in The Independent, Poetry Review and Poetry Wales, and were anthologised in Poetry Introduction 8 (Faber, 1993). He is also a prolific translator, with works including Heinrich Heine’s Germany: A Winter’s Tale (Smokestack, 2006) and his co-translation of État d’Urgence / State of Emergency by Soleiman Adel Guémar (Arc, 2007), which received an English P.E.N. award. His poetry won the Arvon / Observer competition in 1989-90, the 2006 Cardiff International Poetry Competition and the Keats-Shelley Memorial Association tenth annual poetry competition in 2007.