In Quantum Theory for Cats, York-based poet and ghost trail guide Ian Stuart ably chaperones us through the winding snickelways between bitter beauty and sweet ugliness. After hearing from both of Schrödinger’s pets, we witness spontaneous tears in a bookshop, watch an ambulance arrive through a crack in the curtains, then spend time with saints, artists, doppelgangers and the unborn.

Treading nimbly between wit and profundity, this long-overdue collection from an intriguing new voice in UK poetry takes readers on a brief but invigorating excursion through the humour and tragedy of life.