Useless Magic: Lyrics and Poetry

This book offers a fantastic insight into the mind of Florence Welch, and everything about it, from the cover to the very last page, suits Florence's aesthetic so very well, in a way that fans will instantly recognise this book as a creation of the mind of Flo. I love having this book on my shelf, as it's like my own little piece of Florence's mind.

“THEN LIGHTNING STRUCK / NOW I’M TOTALLY F****D.” I had the supreme joy of reading Florence Welch’s lyrics and poetry, ‘Useless Magic’, a couple of days early. What a monumental gift this book is. The lyrics-by-album serve as a retrospective, a chronology of the artist’s growth over ten years; lyrics which (excepting High As Hope) have been subjective and disputed. Laid out on the page there is no denying the sheer power and poetry of Florence’s song-writing; never does a lyric become a dead thing, flattened to the printed page. And what a joy to read through and discover new meanings. The book is stunningly packaged, complete with photographs and artwork, of/by her and her influences, as well as sketches/notes from her notebooks over the years, seeds planted to bloom much later. But it is the poetry I was most excited for, and most enjoyed. Though only sixteen poems in all, it feels like plenty, with each poem its own marvel, Florence’s voice confident and contemplative. In ‘Oh You’re A Real Man’, a verse in ‘Patricia’ is altered to ask “how many have to die / so that you can feel loved?”, while in ‘Rage’ Florence mourns the “age of rage” we find ourselves living in, the seeming obsolescence of softness and compassion. The inadvertent triptych of ‘Love Hospital’, ‘Wedding’ and ‘Honeymoon’ make a really stunning moment of both circularity and progression, while the insistence of ‘American Mother’ and its personal introspection provide another perspective to Florence’s near-romanticised processing of the world. ‘Monarch Butterflies’ handles the problem of putting written lyrics and poems into the world, “confined to the page so permanent”, while ‘I Guess I Won’t Write Poetry’ muses on “the blank face of god / your demon door / your own personal sad machine”. A true delight in every sense and hopefully merely a prologue of all the poetry to come.

I ordered this for my dearest friend, a long time fan of Florence + The Machine. It's an intimate and touching view into the soul of Florence Welch through her poems, lyrics and artwork, some reproduced directly from the pages of her notebooks. Beautifully arranged and packaged into a book that will undoubtedly be a treasured item for anyone who feels a connection to Florence's music.

Brilliant a must for every Florence follower beautifully presented : with poetic meanderings : song lyrics and drawings . I was a little sceptical when I first saw it advertised but I continually return to sections of it frequently. A publication to savour !

Who really really loved it. A lot of content and deep dives into her work in there if you’re into that. Definitely recommend!

Granddaughter loved this

I bought this as a gift, and the recipient, who is a massive Florence fan, was over the moon. It's a beautifully produced book, full of Florence's drawings, doodles and inner thoughts, as well as lyrics.

Personal buy due to a love of Florence Welch. The book is beautifully put together letting you in on the mind of her creative genius and just simply pretty throughout with her notes, poetry and inspirational art.

OMG, was ist das für ein super Buch!.. Ich bin ein großer Florence Welch (And the machine) Fan und musste dieses Buch haben. Einfach nur aus Neugierde. Der Kauf für dieses Buch hat sich 1000% gelohnt. Es ist so schön, aber jetzt mal über das Buch :) Das Buch kam verschweißt bei mir an. Es hat eine Weinrote Farbe und alles was geschrieben ist, ist in goldener Schrift in den Deckel ‚graviert’ würde ich mal so sagen. Das Buch ist Hardcover, dick und schwer. Auf dem Cover ist ein rotes Herz. Wie man das auch bei meinen Fotos sieht. Das Herz ist leider ein Sticker, der nur draufgeklebt wurde, ging bei mir schon leicht los, was man auf dem 3ten Foto sehen kann. Das Buch ist sehr einfach unterteilt. Es geht um ihre Alben, vom ersten bis zum Letzen Album. Das Buch ist (leider) auf Englisch, so dass ich vieles nicht verstehe, weil Lyrics von den Songs drin sind und auch Erklärungen. Aber ich mache mir einfach die Mühe, die Wörter nachzuschlagen und mit dem Bleistift dabei zu schreiben. Das Buch ist so super gemacht. Ich liebe schon die erste Seite, das ist ein sehr schönes Muster. Sieht man auf dem zweitletzten Bild. Das Buch besteht halt wie gesagt aus Lyrics und Gedichten, aber was ich sehr mag ist, dass es viele Bilder von Florence gibt, aber auch richtige Auszüge/Kopien aus ihren Büchern, wo sie ihre schreib Phasen hatte. Sieht man sehr gut auf dem Letzen Bild. Auch wenn man Florence jetzt nicht kennt, ist dieses Buch einfach der Hammer. Ich kann mir gut vorstellen, dass man es super verschecken kann. Leider kann ich nur 5 Sterne geben ^^ Für Jemanden der nie liest, bin ich sehr begeistert :)

I purchased this book after seeing Florence, live, last October. It's simply stunning. The way it's pulled together is fascinating-- hand written lyrics (covered with rewrites & scribbles), typed poems, little notes & cartoons doodled onto hotel stationary... I found myself feeling guilty, somehow, like I was reading Florence's diary. And at the same time, I would stare at a page wondering why she'd blackened out the name on the hotel stationary, who the person was, had they broken her heart... All in all, a great purchase & well worth the money for any fan of F.A.T.M.

Livro incrível para fãs da Florence!!! Lindo em todos os aspectos, desde a capa em tecido com letras douradas, acabamento, ao conteúdo, letras de música, poemas, ilustrações e imagens internas. Capricho, cuidado e originalidade que imprimem a personalidade única dela. Indispensável na coleção de qualquer um que admira o trabalho da artista.

Great condition

I'm super happy with the book, so no complains about that. But I paid extra money to have it delivered the following day to take it to a concert with me, and it took them a total of 3 days to deliver, which made it late for the concert. They marked is as "failed delivery" which is false because i was at home all day and no one rang the bell, so I'm pretty disappointed at the waste of money.