Versus Versus

‘Versus Versus is a powerful anthology that brings together one hundred deaf, disabled and neurodivergent poets in a testament to resilience, community, and the power of lived experience. From the opening pages, the book pulses with urgency and solidarity. […] Versus Versus is an essential read. It is loving and deeply moving. If you enjoy poetic forms then be prepared to swoon at the mix of sonnets, haikus, rengas, sign language, prose poems and much more. Reflecting diverse voices and experiences, this anthology is a gift - one that demands your time.’ - Yomi Ṣode, Poetry Book Society Selector, PBS Bulletin, Summer 2025

‘Poems are about experience, emotions, ideas. Versus Versus lets me in on tales of perseverance, determination, love, rebellions against the negative […] I think this is one of the main remits here - a dialogue between the speaker and the listener, the reader and the writer, the disabled and the non-disabled.’ - Richard Downes, Disability Arts Online

‘I have just finished reading Versus Versus: 100 Poems by Deaf, Disabled & Neurodivergent Poets edited by Rachael Boast and I am overwhelmed with its strength, variety and compelling poetry. […] This anthology gives us the world, the condition of being human and living through whatever we have to live through to get by. Or not. It gives us duende and magic. […] For D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent poets, I hope you see yourself in some of these works and feel acknowledged, and find resonance in the joys, triumphs and difficulties represented here. I hope that all readers see individual stories, celebrations and heartache rather than generalizations about disability.’ - Amanda Earl, Amanda Thru the Looking Glass

‘This anthology is a dizzying, continent-crossing explosion of verse, its topics and styles as individual as the poets; revelling in the diversity of a community that is often boxed in by ableism and prejudice. A potent theme of resisting limits courses through the book. […] In a period in the UK when disabled people’s rights and living conditions are under threat, this collection feels timely.’ - Rebecca Tamás, The Guardian (Poetry Books of the Month), on Versus Versus

Rachael Boast is a British writer, editor and disability advocate, navigating Ichthyosis and related conditions. She has published four collections of poetry with Picador, Sidereal (2011), Pilgrim’s Flower (2013), Void Studies (2016) and Hotel Raphael (2021). Her poems have been anthologised in Stairs and Whispers: D/deaf and Disabled Poets Write Back (Nine Arches, 2017), Staying Human (Bloodaxe Books, 2020) and 100 Poems to Save the Earth (Seren, 2021). She co-edited The Echoing Gallery: Bristol Poets and Art in the City (Redcliffe Press, 2013) and The Caught Habits of Language: An Entertainment for W.S. Graham for Him Having Reached One Hundred (Donut Press, 2018). She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.