Philip Larkin

Philip Larkin: A writer's life by Andrew Motion (Faber and Faber, 1994)
The Poet Laureate Andrew Motion, Larkin's literary executor and close friend, was granted unique access to private documents and was assisted throughout by those most intimately connected with Larkin.
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The Letters of Kingsley Amis by Kingsley Amis, editor Zachary Leader (HarperCollins, 2001)
A lively compilation featuring numerous examples of Amis and Larkin's infamous correspondence. They were lifelong friends, if not indeed soul mates, and enjoyed a unique and personal bond, fuelled by a curious cocktail of mutual intellect and puerile humour.
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The Philip Larkin I Knew by Maeve Brennan (Manchester University Press, 2002)
Brennan enjoyed a close friendship with Larkin during his 30 year career at the University of Hull. This unique insight reveals a caring, charming and compassionate man — an image often at odds with his public persona. Along with an appendix of some 55 letters between Larkin and Brennan, many previously unpublished, there are insights into his impact as a librarian, manager and administrator.
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Philip Larkin, The Marvel Press and Me by Jean Hartley (Sumach Press, 1993)
Jean Hartley was a long-term friend and publisher of Larkin. 'Jean Hartley's story is a vital piece of evidence for anyone curious about Larkin's life': Andrew Motion, The Observer.
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Required Writing: Miscellaneous pieces, 1955-1982 by Philip Larkin (Faber and Faber, 1983)
A varied collection of work, including reviews, critical assessments and interviews. Featuring a variety of prose from jazz reviews to critical assessments, and a number of revealing interviews.
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Further Requirements by Philip Larkin and Anthony Thwaite (Faber and Faber, 2002)
Anthony Thwaite edited this additional collection of interviews, broadcasts, statements and reviews. It carries on where Required Writing left off, supplying us with further insights into this complicated and varied man.
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The Whitsun Weddings by Philip Larkin (Faber and Faber, 1964)
The collection that saw Larkin awarded the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry. The title poem describes the poet's journey by train from Hull to London, using the tones and rhythms of ordinary speech and focusing on the urban landscape of the industrial north.
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All What Jazz: A record diary 1961-1971 by Philip Larkin (Faber and Faber, 1985)
Further proof of the diversity of Larkin's output — a collection of his jazz reviews for The Daily Telegraph.
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Collected Poems by Philip Larkin (Faber and Faber, 2003)
This edition presents his four published books The North Ship, The Less Deceived, The Whitsun Weddings and High Windows in their original sequence.
The North Ship is still heavily under the influence of his influences, especially Yeats. On receiving the offer of publication he said 'I spent the next three years trying to write like Yeats, not because I liked his personality or liked his ideas, but out of infatuation with his music.'
The Less Deceived was the work which brought Larkin his first major success. Melancholic and sarcastic while remaining real, witty and truthful.
High Windows features reflections on the onset of middle age as the freedoms and lusts of youth recede over the horizon, as always with his trademark combination of bitterness, insight and humour.
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The Oxford Book of Twentieth Century English Verse foreword by Andrew Motion, editor Philip Larkin (Oxford University Press, 1972)
Larkin broke from the norm with his inclusion of work by many lesser known writers at the expense of some accepted greats. This divided the literary community, with the likes of John Betjeman (the man Larkin would later decline to succeed as Poet Laureate) defending his actions, while others of a more traditional leaning came out against.
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