Cold Skin (USA)

Front Street Books have just released my YA verse-novel Cold Skin in the USA. It's the fourth book of mine they've published (all in hardcover) and they always do such a wonderful job. I think this is my favourite cover of them all. 

To quote from their web-site:-

First love, sexual awakening, murder, cowardice, vengeance and forgiveness ... these are the powerful ingredients for Steven Herrick's gutsiest book yet.

Someone should make it into a film!

But, now to really really important matters. Remember this blog is poetry AND football. 

I apologise to all Sydney residents who were awoken in the early hours of this morning by my screams of joy when Barcelona scored in the third minute of injury time to go through to the Champions League Final, defeating the dark-side, Chelsea, a team built on oil-rich Russian millions. It was a victory for football beauty, exemplified by Lionel Messi and Andreas Inestia, two players recruited by Barcelona at a very young age and developed at the Barcelona academy, La Masia. How's that for an idea - don't spend millions buying players, just develop youngsters into becoming the best footballers in the world. 

And then we have Chelsea. A bunch of quality players under an excellent coach. And yet... and yet... how can anyone admire a team containing Didier Drogba? A striker of immense talent and strength who spends most of the game diving and appealing for a penalty. It's kinda ironic that Chelsea deserved a penalty but didn't get one - The Boy who cried Wolf anyone? Maybe Aussie Guus should tell Didier to try football not theatre next time he takes the field. Here's a link to a real striker who never dived, no matter how often he was hacked. Pure poetry indeed.