Wendy Hope will be in Guangzhou on July 23 for an afternoon of poetry. Caroline Forbes / for China Daily

Long before Bridget Jones sipped her first Chardonnay, poet Wendy Cope was casting a satirical eye over the minefield of contemporary sexual politics: "Bloody men are like bloody buses/You wait for about a year/And as soon as one approaches your stop/Two or three others appear."

Cope's rueful wisdom connects her to the tradition of John Betjeman and Philip Larkin, but she brings a fresh female perspective to bear on social and literary foibles.

She is described as one of England's wittiest contemporary poets whilst equally revered for the seriousness of her subject matter.

In her new book, Family Values, with mordant humour she remembers the wounds of a damaged childhood and recalls the inevitable problems of ageing with an intriguing blend of sadness and joy.

She has been invited to read her work in many different countries, including Germany, Holland, Finland, the Czech Republic, Israel, Jordan, Sri Lanka, Canada and the US.

Venue: UN Bookstore, 314 Beijing Rd, Guangzhou

Date: 23 July

Website: www.britishcouncil.org

China daily