PJ Harvey to release first book of poetry

PJ Harvey has moved into literary territory with the announcement of her first book, a collection of poetry entitled ‘The Hollow of the Hand’, which will be released via Bloomsbury next autumn.

Scheduled for October 2015, the singer’s 224-page book of verse is part of a joint project with filmmaker/photographer Seamus Murphy and documents Harvey’s excursions to locations as disparate, challenging and intriguing as Kosovo and Afghanistan.

Murphy, who collaborated with Harvey on a set of films based on her 2011 Mercury Prize-winning album Let England Shake, will supply accompanying photos of the singer’s chosen destinations.

In a statement, Harvey elaborated on the book’s premise:

“Gathering information from secondary sources felt too far removed for what I was trying to write about. I wanted to smell the air, feel the soil and meet the people of the countries I was fascinated with. My friend Seamus Murphy and I agreed to grow a project together – I would collect words, he would collect pictures, following our instincts on where we should go.”

Of recent months, Harvey has found her way back into the spotlight. In September, she became the recipient of an honorary degree from Goldsmiths University and went on to contribute a cover version of ex-partner Nick Cave’s ‘Red Right Hand’ to the soundtrack of BBC drama ‘Peaky Blinders’.