Summary: <p><em>Today's poem is for those snowed in and ready for spring. </em></p><br><p><strong>Bio via Wikipedia: </strong></p><br><p>Philip Arthur Larkin <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Companion_of_Honour" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">CH</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commander_of_the_Order_of_the_British_Empire" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">CBE</a> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fellow_of_the_Royal_Society_of_Literature" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">FRSL</a> (9 August 1922 – 2 December 1985) was an English poet, novelist, and librarian. His first book of poetry, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_North_Ship" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>The North Ship</em></a>, was published in 1945, followed by two novels, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jill_(novel)" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Jill</em></a> (1946) and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Girl_in_Winter" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>A Girl in Winter</em></a> (1947), and he came to prominence in 1955 with the publication of his second collection of poems, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Less_Deceived" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>The Less Deceived</em></a>, followed by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Whitsun_Weddings" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>The Whitsun Weddings</em></a> (1964) and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Windows" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>High Windows</em></a> (1974). He contributed to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Daily_Telegraph" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>The Daily Telegraph</em></a> as its <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">jazz</a> critic from 1961 to 1971, articles gathered in <em>All What Jazz: A Record Diary 1961–71</em> (1985), and he edited <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Oxford_Book_of_Twentieth_Century_English_Verse" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>The Oxford Book of Twentieth Century English Verse</em></a> (1973).<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Larkin#cite_note-1" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[1]</a> His many honours include the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen%27s_Gold_Medal_for_Poetry" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry</a>.<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Larkin#cite_note-2" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">[2]</a> He was offered, but declined, the position of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poet_Laureate_of_the_United_Kingdom" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Poet Laureate</a> in 1984, following the death of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Betjeman" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sir John Betjeman</a>.</p><br><hr><p style="color:grey;font-size:0.75em;"> See <a style="color:grey;" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://acast.com/privacy">acast.com/privacy</a> for privacy and opt-out information.</p>
