I don’t read enough experimental writing so I am grateful to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours for inviting me to participate in this blog tour for Richard Doyle’s The death of the sentence. I’m sharing my review today.

Independently published, The death of the sentence is available for purchase here.

The death of the sentence

The death of the sentence is the debut role of the writer; the plight of the poetry pamphlet; an inventive homage; science in the novel; science fiction in the real world; prose spaceship and singular music; both fun –

Simple in style yet steeped in emotion, I recommend The death of the sentence for poetry newbs and aficionados alike – Dystopic.co.uk

My Review of The death of the sentence

A collection of experimental writing.

Given that The death of the sentence is only a few pages long, Richard Doyle packs an enormous amount into this collection. Featuring both poetry and prose the reader can dip in and find much to ponder.

My favourite piece was My novel as it made me think about the books I’ve read and to see if I could think of a work to fit each of Richard Doyle’s categories so that reading The death of the sentence became an interactive experience.

Richard Doyle’s writing techniques are fascinating. His use of repetition in alive, for example, creates a feeling of history repeating itself whilst providing an oxymoronic intimate distance between the two voices. So much of what is written can be interpreted on many levels giving the reader cause to think. Pushbike Passion may well have a literal sense with a bicycle tyre puncture, but the impression of emotional hurt, possibly even of religious iconography, gives many layers to appreciate and this is true of the pieces across the collection.

Underpinning all the writing in The death of the sentence is a sensation of unfulfilled desire and ambition that I think would resonate with any aspiring writer as well as with readers. It is as if Richard Doyle feels he has not achieved his potential. Add in the many literary references, with images of the galaxies and nature, and there is a profound sense of the universal insignificance of humankind that I found affecting and thought provoking.

I am aware that my comments are very much my own personal responses to The death of the sentence and I think this is what makes it work so well. Richard Doyle’s writing is obviously personal to him but it affords the reader an opportunity to consider their own life and their role in the world. I found The death of the sentence very interesting.

About Richard Doyle

Richard Doyle is an old-school SF fan who began writing seriously in 2001. He has a Diploma in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia and collaborated on a book in 2006. He has had poems published in the UK poetry magazines Orbis and Sarasvati and is a regular member of the Bristol Stanza Poetry Group.

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