Why is a life saved from a terrorist attack worth two saved from a natural disaster? Why are women more valuable than ever? Why do Americans tip when Europeans don't? And how can orange juice be used to predict the weather?
This book consists of two long poems. Lines of Desire tells the story of an individual in crisis, under cruel pressure both from past and present events. Joe Soap combines narrative and lyric forms to trace a historical pattern reaching from the First World War to contemporary...