Welcome to the official website of Raftery the Poet. 

I have been writing and performing my own poetry for a number of years, mainly in the West Yorkshire area. Having grown up in the Merseyside region I came to Leeds as a journeyman pile-cloth weaver at some point in the seventies and it has been my home ever since. My poetry is frequently humorous but often tinged with pathos as I strive to acutely observe and spotlight the minutiae of life. I am keen to bring my work to a wider audience. Hopefully visitors to this website will enjoy the opportunity to sample the essential flavour of my work and will use it as the gateway to discover more. 

Richard Raftery
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                                          Important news!!!


My latest (and indeed first) novel - The Return of the Black Magician - is now available. Set in Ormskirk (Lancashire) and the surrounding district, it is a peculiar tale of a severely dystopian community – a curious mix of humour, politics and the macabre, and therefore highly apposite for the turbulent times in which we live.


To order and obtain a copy go to Amazon by clicking on the link below. Book early to avoid disappointment.

Illustrations (and cover) designed by artist Lorna Johnstone.


Essential reading for the dark, gloomy winter months. 


https://www.amazon.co.uk/Return-Black-Magician-Richard-Raftery/dp/1786236419/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=the+return+of+the+black+magician&qid=1574976972&s=books&sr=1-1


To order a copy from hive.co.uk click on the following link

https://www.hive.co.uk/Product/Richard-Raftery/The-Return-of-the-Black-Magician/24601326

         
         And from Waterstones go to 
https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-return-of-the-black-magician/richard-raftery/9781786236418  


Review: I finished reading The Return of the Black Magician last weekend. I must say I found it a very easy, thoroughly entertaining read. The story moves along at pace with a bunch of characters who provide many moments of hope and humour amidst their despair. Bathos and pathos were there in abundance. The descriptions of Ormskirk and the surrounding area in winter are vivid, evoking memories of growing up there, tramping through fields and along paths with the wind howling and the rain pouring, on a good day! (John Dachsparren)



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