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‘Atmospheric and intoxicating’ CANDICE CARTY-WILLIAMS

‘A joyous, lyrical read’ YOMI ADEGOKE

‘Hypnotic and freewheeling’
GUARDIAN

Caleb Femi returns with a landmark, life-affirming new poetry collection, The Wickedest.

This is a minute-by-minute depiction of a typical night at a legendary monthly house party known as ‘The Wickedest’. Here, we meet a vivid cast of characters, young and old, all surfing a revelry steeped in camaraderie, community, desire and a spirit of jubilant defiance.

A modern epic, The Wickedest explores the institution of shoobs or house parties and their vital role within working-class communities. The poems range from classical English sonnets to experimental forms and are immersively interwoven with photographs, text messages and ephemera. The collection playfully dissembles parties – in space, sound, law and bureaucracy – to document the precarious existence of our nightlife venues.

In Caleb Femi’s inimitable, cinematic style the book builds to a crescendo that is at once euphoric and grief-soaked. The Wickedest calls us to cast our minds to the moments we stood surrounded by our loved ones on a dancefloor, arms outstretched, and freed ourselves from the weight of reality to float.

‘One of London’s most renowned poets’ SALMA EL-WARDANY, BBC Radio London

‘I love the collection so much’ NICK GRIMSHAW, BBC Radio 6

‘A near-holy experience’ JONATHAN ESCOFFERY

‘This is poetry that moves and is felt in the body’ ANDREW MCMILLAN

Caleb Femi’s collection, Poor, won the Forward Prize’s Felix Dennis Prize for Best First Collection in 2021

Publisher Review

‘Atmospheric and intoxicating, lyrical and inviting … a heady night in the dance, and Caleb Femi is the life of the literary party’ Candice Carty-Williams, author of People Person

‘Immersive, rapturous writing that truly transports … A joyous, lyrical read that I won’t soon forget and Caleb Femi, an exceptionally talented poet’ Yomi Adegoke, author of The List

‘From its first word this is poetry that moves and is felt in the body; the poem taken from the page to the dance floor of the club’ Andrew McMillan, author of Pity

‘Wholly immersive, The Wickedest crystalizes and forever elevates bashment in this pulsing, visceral fever dream … A near-holy experience, The Wickedest should be read, reread, and studied’ Jonathan Escoffery, author of If I Survive You

‘A mellifluously marvellous journey towards joy … pulses with Rhythm and Poetry at its most penetrating and picturesque. Caleb has constructed a jewel of a jam; glimmering, sweaty, sensual, unforgettable’ Inua Ellams, author of The Half-God of Rainfall

‘Renders thrillingly tangible a world of moments in which the relationship between the DJ the riddim and the dancer is a kind of sacrament, a form of collective healing in the face of life’s manifold threats to black life’ Kayo Chingonyi, author of A Blood Condition

‘A mesmerizing journey through the different moments of one night’s revelry. A heady mix of the formal and urbane, the sacred and mundane … A unique cultural experience … A hypnotic, experiential happening of a book-essential reading for all’ Roger Robinson, author of A Portable Paradise

‘A riveting collection, bottled in a time capsule of nostalgia, and lived experience. These poems are as tender, as they are a vibe. A head nod to communities meeting in ritual’ Yomi Sode, author of Manorisms