A Finger in the Fishes Mouth

A facsimile edition of Derek Jarman’s sole, early, extremely rare poetry book A Finger in the Fishes Mouth, originally published in 1972.

Heavily illustrated from Jarman’s collection of postcards, the book combines text and visual imagery in a way which foreshadows his subsequent style as an artist and filmmaker. With the majority of the first edition having been destroyed by Jarman, this makes available again a missing, significant piece of his oeuvre.

The original reissue was published in close collaboration with Jarman’s biographer Tony Peake, and his long-time companion Keith Collins, who oversaw Jarman’s legacy and estate until his sudden death in 2018 after a short illness. 

The facsimile retains the book’s original format and size, with a silver mirror cover, and an image accompanying each poem, printed in a striking green ink. 

[publisher's note]

Additional material comes in the form of a foreword and afterwords by So Mayer, Tony Peake and Keith Collins.