Books
A complete list of all books containing work by Jay, including picture books, poetry anthologies, essay collections, and solo poetry collections.
The Vanishing Song
September 2023
This collection searches for the wildness of medieval Christianity. Saints speak, forests overtake the churches, and ancient bones rise from the earth. These poems are a call to an older, stranger, form of faith; full of creeping greenery and roaring seas, where death is the only certainty, and the conquering of death through resurrection is the only promised victory.
Published by Canterbury Press
Our Earth is a poem
August 2023
Jay has contributed one poem - “Nature Nurtures” - to this illustrated collection of poems about the environment.
Published by Little Tiger
My Heart is a poem
February 2023
Jay has contributed one poem - “Lost For Words” - to this illustrated collection of poems about feelings.
Published by Little Tiger
Courage in a poem
September 2022
Jay has contributed one poem - “To be a Man” - to this illustrated collection of poems about empowerment.
Published by Little Tiger
100 Queer Poems
June 2022
Jay has contributed one poem - “In The Future” - to this collection of poems about the Queer experience, selected by Mary Jean Chan and Andrew McMillan
Published by Vintage
My Own Way
February 2022
Jay adapted this picture book / poem hybrid by Joana Estrela from the original Portuguese.
An exploration of the vastness of gender, and the importance of being who you are, and expressing yourself how you wish, rather than falling into binaries or stereotypes.
Recommended for readers aged 3-6
Published by Wide Eyed Editions
The Backwater Sermons
October 2021
In this queer Christian poetry collection Jonah is heckled over etymology, angels appear in tube stations, and Jesus sits atop a multi-story car park. Cathedrals are trans, trans people are cathedrals, and amidst it all God reaches out to meet us exactly where we are.
Published by Canterbury Press
Tomorrow is Beautiful
September 2021
Jay has contributed one poem - “Rise” - to this collection of poems focussing on calm, peace, and positivity, chosen by verse novelist Sarah Crossan.
Published by Bloomsbury
Here Be Monsters
June 2021
A highly allegorical mini-epic poem about a creature who is washed out to sea, where she hatches alone. With no idea who she truly is, she travels the seas, trying and failing to fit in - until she finally finds out who she truly is.
Recommended for readers aged 5-8
Published by Pop Up Projects
Nominated for the 2022 Kate Greenaway Medal
The Outrage
May 2021
Jay wrote the foreword to this LGBT+ Dystopian Romance by acclaimed YA author William Hussey
Recommended for readers aged 14+
Published by Usborne
The Book of Queer Prophets
May 2020
Jay has contributed a chapter to this collection of 21 essays on the intersection of LGBT+ identity and religious faith. Curated by Ruth Hunt.
Published by William Collins, an imprint of Harper Collins
Clouds Cannot Cover Us
October 2019
A solo collection of poetry for teenagers. Featuring struggles, honesty, and above all, hope. This book is a lifeline, and a mirror, and a friendly voice.
Recommended for readers aged 11-17
Published by Troika Books
Nominated for the 2021 Carnegie Medal
Poems Out Loud!
September 2019
Jay has contributed one poem - “The Washing Up Liquid Ignited” Jay has contributed one poem - “The Washing Up Liquid Ignited” to this collection for children aged 4+, featuring award-winning poets, brand new voices, hip-hop artists and spoken-word performers.
Recommended for readers aged 4+
Published by Ladybird Books
Moonstruck!
June 2019
Jay has contributed one poem - “You” to this anthology of poems about the moon, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Moon Landing.
Recommended for readers aged 7+
Published by Otter-Barry Books
I Bet I Can Make You Laugh
August 2018
Jay has contributed one poem - “My Homework Ate My Dog” to this anthology of funny children’s poems, collected by Joshua Siegal.
Recommended for readers aged 9+
Published by Bloomsbury
Winner of the Best Laugh Out Loud Book for 9–13-year-olds at the 2019 Lollies awards
Rising Stars
October 2017
Jay has contributed eight poems to this children’s collection by five young LGBT/BAME poets.
Recommended for readers aged 9+
Published by Otter-Barry Books.
Highly Commended at the 2018 CLiPPA Awards.
Words That Burn
Summer 2017
Jay has contributed one poem to this teaching resource.
Published by Amnesty International
City Boys Should Not Feed Horses
2016
Self-published in 2016.
A Heartful of Fist
2016
Poems written by young poets from The Poetry Society’s SLAMbassadors programme.
Recommended for readers aged 11+
Published by OutSpoken Press and the Poetry Society.
The Prospect of Wings
2015
Self-published in 2015. With a foreword by actor Anthony Head