Blog

22nd March, 2024

Friday Poem – ‘The Butterfly House’ by Kathryn Bevis

Blue Morphos butterfly resting against a sunlit windowpane

This week’s Friday Poem is ‘The Butterfly House’ by Kathryn Bevis from her highly anticipated debut collection. We’re hosting an online launch for The Butterfly House on Zoom on the 10th April. Details of how to register for the event are below.

The Butterfly House i.m. Ray Holloway Yours is the only death I’ve ever known. We sat with you for hours and stroked your hands. And though it was January — the pond a frozen oval — though each blade of grass had etched itself against the ground and each frail thing had hidden from the stalking frost, a butterfly flew to your window, sudden and strange, with wings that throbbed like a heart. The day we buried you, we saw another: crimson sails unfurled, its body putting out to sea. Today’s a pilgrimage. I rest in mist and heat. Red lacewings gather their silk skirts as I trace a swallowtail’s trembling pulse. Together, apart, together: a pair of blue morphos shiver like black-fringed scraps of sky. Clear as leaded panes, glasswings feast on nectar. They close themselves like hands that meet in prayer, then open up to cup the tropic air. Since my diagnosis, I see them every time I close my eyes. Their flaming wings. Their too short lives.
Join us for the virtual launch of The Butterfly House. Kathryn Bevis. Wednesday 10th April 7-8pm. Celebration publication of Kathryn's debut collection with guest readsers Dillion Jaxx and Jonathan Edwards. Online via Zoom with captions by Otter.ai.
Register to attend

More news

17th August, 2026

Laura Wainwright shortlisted for the Laurel Prize

11th August, 2026

Guest Post: Sarah Johnson reflects on the IPA Congress 2026

10th August, 2026

Maggie Harris wins Guyana Prize for Literature Poetry Award

21st July, 2026

Guest post: Eoghan Walls on writing ‘Elsa & the Wolfman’

Related Books

This cover shows a renaissance style painting of a woman looking at a butterfly perched on her finger. In place of a wig, her hair takes the shape of a human heart overlayed with tiny doors which attract a multitude of butterflies. The text reads: The Butterfly House, Kathryn Bevis.

The Butterfly House

Kathryn Bevis

Buy now