Elizabeth Parker's second collection, Cormorant, explores the creature of the title from all angles. The bird itself however is always untameable and irreducible to human impressions. It is a 'Devil Bird' ('Dart'), 'omens in a dying beech' (Cormorant), the bubble of an underwater diver, an enemy of anglers, or the elusive subject watched by humans. Parker plays close attention to the city of Bristol and its inhabitants whether they are human or more-than-human. There is a powerful depth to place here, which is full of carefully observed details about a live and independent natural world, but human history and human losses also resonate.
Elizabeth Parker was born in London and grew up in Pygmy Pinetum Garden Nurseries, a garden centre in The Forest of Dean. She attended Monmouth Comprehensive School in Wales and school trips to Ty Newydd Writing Centre nurtured her passion for creative writing. She achieved First Class Honours in English and Creative Writing at Warwick University, under the inspiring tutelage of David Morley, Maureen Freeley and Peter Blegvad. She has an MA in Mythology from Bristol University. She lives in Bristol with her partner and two sons.