Sharon Olds, the winner of the 2012 TS Eliot Prize for Stag’s Leap, is the first female American Poet to win the prize, and perhaps the most accessible poet of her generation.

Olds, who has always had a gift for describing intimacy, has, in a sense, had these poems thrown at her by life and allowed them to take root: they are stunning – the best of a formidable career.

[A] brilliant and fearless poet.

A tremendous book of grace and gallantry which crowns the career of a world-class poet.

Taut and beautiful poems.

Brave, generous and very moving.

[It] amazed me...great, heartfelt, monumental book.

Each image of Sharon Olds' searing Stag's Leap brands itself on retina and heart - how will I ever forget the "Tiny Siren" found by accident in the washing machine?

The most powerful piece of writing I've encountered in decades... The raw emotion of break up transcends every known cliché thanks to her generosity of spirit and the awe-inspiring choreography of her language.

I read this poetry collection with my heart in my mouth.

I treasure this collection of poems: so beautiful, so personal, so revolutionary. Every time I return to this book I find a line, a stanza that I understand better, differently, appreciate just a little more.

A devastating tale of subterfuge, poverty and privilege set in the cobbled streets of Victorian London.

Magnificent, bringing the Dickensian streets to grubby, teeming life

Cements his reputation as an accomplished and challenging novelist… Though it takes place 130 years ago, the questions that The Streets poses about how, as a society and individuals, we tackle deprivation arguably remain just as pertinent

Quinn blends his history, his political concerns, his ideals, his plot and his characters elegantly, with a light hand and the pace of a thriller

Quinn’s most mature novel yet… His picture of poverty’s shaming, dehumanizing effect is powerful, and the recurrent call for pity heartfelt. Ms Eliot and Mr Dickens would surely approve

Anthony Quinn is a terrific storyteller. He has a thrilling knack for turning familiar periods of history into something surprising and often shocking, and for making the fortunes and misfortunes of his characters matter

Displays the unsentimental yet powerful flair for romance that characterized his previous novel, Half of the Human Race. Perhaps most exciting of all, there is a sense that he is still writing within himself

Quinn brings the period in question vividly to life: his research is exemplary, and his subject absorbing

All the ingredients of an upmarket page-turner

Ambitious, gripping and disturbingly well done

Beyond its splendid feel for the era’s chat and patter, the novel pits philanthropy and opportunism, ideals and selfishness, bracingly at odds

This novel is refreshingly different and contains a cornucopia of wonderful material and evocative descriptions

The best book I’ve read in ages… You have to read it.