Hollie McNish: Brand New Book Tour

Virgin: one little six letter word that holds such incredible power. The power to pressure, to judge, to harm, to praise, to profit, to punish. But virginity is also just a concept, a man-made label that has been pressed upon people for centuries in numerous cultures worldwide.

In this much-anticipated collection of poetry, Hollie McNish unpicks the role this word has played in her own life, as well as others, with her trademark mix of humour, fury and compassion. Whether considering if Mary was a fan of her own nick-name, to rejoicing her annual excitement in ice cream vans, to looking back on how ridiculously she ate mashed potato with her family after apparently 'losing' her own virginity, Hollie examines the tracks this concept makes throughout so many lives in her own inimitable way, and the possibilities of freedom.

At times hilarious, at times harrowing, always hopeful - a poetic love letter against the more nefarious effects of purity culture, packed with stacks of mashed potato, hand holds and early morning light.

Hollie McNish is a poet and author based between Glasgow and Cambridge. She was the first poet to record at Abbey Road Studios, London and won the Ted Hughes Award for New Work in Poetry for her poetic parenting memoir – Nobody Told Me – of which The Scotsman stated ‘The World Needs this Book’. She has published five further collections of poetry – Papers, Cherry Pie, Plum, and Slug and Lobster, both Sunday Times bestsellers. She loves writing.