Agnes Meadows, poet: "Leaving Traces " is Mary Pargeter's second collection, and one which fully embraces life's tragedies, sorrows and regrets, as well as some of the things that amuse or remind us of nature's bounty. It is a collection packed with poignant, emotional images that haunt, staying with you long after you've read the poems. Evocative and nostalgic are words that spring to mind over-and-over again when reading Mary's exquisitely crafted collection. The common thread linking each of its four parts is sadness for what was once replete with life and promise, but which has now passed. There is a ghost-like quality about this writing, as if each word and phrase is a thread in the writer's rich tapestry of years and memories, the past an ever-present but remote reality, all of it imbued with elemental magic and the mystery of the natural world. Ultimately, I loved the whole collection because, despite its often painful and nostalgic themes, it was beautifully written by a poet who has clearly taken a great deal of time and thought to fine-tune each memory, real or imagined, allowing us to springboard our own regrets and disappointments.