european

Best surrealist poetry ever written in Spanish. Period.

Moreover...the third part where Neruda turns to his more political poetry is a good preview of what he will expand later in "canto General".

what else can be said about Neruda. He is a genius.

I read a lot of Extravagaria and understood it fairly well - especially the english version. The last third of Extravagaria was difficult for me because of topical issues and politics and what Santiago was like and what not. Residence on Earth follows that formula for ME at least - it gets harder and harder. This isn't to say it isn't enjoyable, but many poems require, or even demand, many, many rereadings. Almost like reading Balzac, I have to trudge through a lot of boring, or in this case, incomprehensible references the antecedents of which feed the basic satisfaction of getting to understanding the meaning. I suppose what I am getting at is that one cannot - and I suspect this is universal - apprehend the gorgeous phrases that at some points REALLY STAND OUT without, unfortunately, knowing the stakes of the poem, these stakes being set in another country, and written by someone who may have been too prolific (though I guess that was his personality, and without that, ya ya ). This may sound obvious to the point of banality, but really: Potential buyer, not everyone is fully, or even halfly, versed in Chile, the politics of south america, etc., so it follows that for those who aren't, there is going to be some intellectual grasping in some of the poems. And Neruda is so popular and this is his most profound book so any poetry lover might jump at this anthology. Maybe too much grasping is required in reading these poems without a historical background. Or you can do like me, and just make up a polemical event when the poem calls for one, much like the way I make up the way many trees look like in 18th century novels. I suppose I would have to read a biography on Neruda and take a class on the history of south america in order to go to the next level of uh, "poetry cogntion" (forgive me). Still, and despite all these petty and looking up, lazy complaints, I love most of the poems even reading blindly. I also pretentiously suspect that the translation is quite good; very uncommon english words are found throughout the book and this may indicate the translator's respect for Neruda insofar as his not trying to artificially streamline things by giving us our english synonyms; My basic impression is that the translator thinks that if we want to read a book such as this we should - "well, jeepers, this book precisely contains some of the most profound poetry of the 20th century" - go ahead and learn spanish. Anyway, a very good book especially if one enjoys rerereading poetry. As far as the comparison with Walt whitman, I guess one would really need to know the original language quite well indeed. Though concerning the actual content of the poetry, I suppose I can see why both poets could be mentioned in the same paragraph, maybe in the same way as Hitchock could be with Nabakov. But for my money, Neruda and Whitman seem pretty dissimilar too. (Though I did see a picture of Whitman among Neruda's favorite poets in his house) It would be interesting to read where the similarities are.

Neruda delivers an uninhibited glimse at human emotions and panges of life in this collection of poems. Neruda jars the soul by explaining in simple verse, how tragic life can be. The reflections and odes collected in this work are a superb display of the skill Neruda has. Residence on Earth is a compilation of poetry from a mature poet who willfully takes risks, and carries through with beautiful prose. Nerudas candid emotional stylizations convince one of the feeling of being consumed by the poetry itself. Neruda is boundless in structure. The easy style allow for the reader to atempt to understand the abundant imagery and symbolism contained traditionally within Nerudas works. One must read this compilation, as one would consume a fine port wine, or richly decadent chocolate-with trepidation. Time to reflect and savor the splendor of this poet is most definately required.

Arthur Rimbaud's Poems and Prose speak a dark truth of life.

Rimbaud does not shield you from the realities of his time or his life. He writes of all the things he encountered as a child, soldier, poet, lover, and vagabond.

His poems are of his youth and his prose are of his life. The poems do not depict a romantic childhood but of one with struggle and cynism that he carried all his life. To read his poems is to experience his youthful assurance that the world was flawed. You will be affected by his dark perception of the world and awed by his realistic and symbolic style.

As for his prose, he writes of a tortured existence and bohemian lifestyle steeped in a wild reality that was his life.

My favorit passages from this book of poems and prose:

"One evening, I sat Beauty in my lap. - And I found her bitter. - And I cursed her." from A Season in Hell

"It is found again. What? Eternity. It is the sea, Gone with the sun." from Eternity

I very much enjoyed this book and thought Rimbaud changed modern poetry and writing and brought us into a new realistic age in writing. He opened the doors for some of the great 20th century writers.

Rimbaud is one of the most impressive poets of all time, never compromising himself to the drudgery of the world around him. If at any point in your life you have begun to feel like a free spirit, read Rimbaud's youthful verse and be prepared to percieve life transcedentally. Within his surrealistic vision you will find the vulnerability of weakness with the demonic anger of a pocessed soul. There are poems that stir every feeling of what it's like to be young, and free and drunk on the pleasures of life. A true poet.

We are not serious when we are 17...but are we more serious at 18 or later? He was so young, so sensitive; he wanted to find life, find a place, the place.Like Baudelaire, he was searching his own way, but not in a dark state of mind. The keywords to go through his works are: rebellion,youth and innocence...He is sometimes cruel but I think it's to hide his fragility...I like his childish way of creating; direct but full of hidden love he couldn't give.Read him and you'll probably find that we are not serious at 17 , but that although he found himself not serious, he was so intelligent and receptive to world despite his innocence...

"Patrick O'Kelly was a peddler of scarves and trinkets, with a habit of telling magnificent lies." So begins "The Ring of Truth". "Magnificent" may even be an understatement for him. He is supposed to have kissed the Blarney Stone once, that fabled and mystical rock that gives one the gift of gab, and by the way he carries on, it's believed that he managed to get a bit of that rock stuck in his teeth! He is such a fine artist of Blarney, that he easily boasts that he could out-fib the very king of the Leprechauns himself!!

Well, as any good Irish legend will tell you, be careful about what you say about the Fair Folk, for they have great ears for hearing and egos to boot!! It's hardly long before Patrick O'Kelly is swept off to the very land of the Faeries to meet the king of the leprechauns himself!

Like any fine Celtic tale, the book is full of twists and turns and play on words, of which the title of the book is just one (I'll not give away the ending for fear of spoiling the fun for readers!). The ending is a fun surprise for readers, as well as for our brave hero, Patrick O'K. Himself! What will stick to readers' ribs most, however, are the illustrations.

Illustrated by Omar Rayyan, the book resembles now an illuminated manuscript, now a surrealistic painting. Faeries and other Fair Folk are mischievous creatures, to say the least, and to step into their world, however briefly, is to take a roller coaster ride into the ethereal and strange. Winged sprites flit too and fro, and the King has always about him a smile that is first playful and fun, and upon closer inspection, hinting at some darker purpose. Once Patrick has gone to their fair land, they are all about him, hiding here and there, yet the reader knows that they are invisible to everyone-another example of that mischievous, almost sinister magic they weave.

All in all, a tremendous book and perhaps too overlooked in the children's section. Though Irish in nature, it is not about St. Patrick's day, so there is no need to keep it mothballed until then! Bring out this treasure of a story and illustration and read it often!!

Teresa Bateman's Ring Of Truth is simply wonderful! I enjoyed reading this wild tale of "true" blarney. Delightful and entertaining---A great read.

Rich, complex and gorgeous illustrations provide the perfect compliment to the story of the braggart Patrick who is tricked by the Leprechaun King and must now tell only the truth. Obviously, this will be a decided disadvantage in the Blarney contest in which he is entered. Or will it? A thoroughly enjoyable tale which has the familiar feel of a truly great fairytale for the ages.

.... William Merwin opens "The River Sound" with songs of praise for the natural world in that familiar voice: his fluid, sonorous blend of elegy and ecstasy, sometimes tinged with bitterness about the earth's degradation at human hands. Like his earlier poems, these rejoice in beginnings--dawns, the freshly wakened spirit, "April with the first light sifting/ through the young leaves," the Hudson River before British explorers arrived. Then Merwin turns his attention to history and aging. As he contemplates the past that shaped him, the people and events he has known begin to resemble "the ancient shaping of water/ to which the light of an hour comes back as to a secret." It seems that the poet of mornings has made a new, personal peace with history and change.

The book is a dazzling collection of poems, wise and playful. "Lament for the Makers" is a series of affectionate, quirky eulogies for poets who influenced Merwin and who died during his lifetime, and a confession of his tendency to see himself (partly because of his early rise to literary fame) as "the youngest on the block." This self-image lasted, he wryly admits, long after "the notes in some anthology/ listed persons born after me." The glorious heart of the book is the moving 60-page "Testimony," a leisurely, often funny family history about reaching an age when "the open unrepeatable/ present in which [we] wake and live" becomes "a still life still alive": at last we "know/ what to do with it." The poet ends "Testimony" by bequeathing treasures (a walk shared, a river heard together, a whole Manhattan city block) to each of his life's companions.

Merwin's sentences often run together without punctuation but (as in other work) not merely to echo the rivers, the music, or the sympathetic imagination winding through his pages. His stream of language invites readers inside it as collaborators in its syntax, listening for the sounds of the phrases in the mind's mouth. This intimate sharing of speech is just one of the great pleasures of "The River Sound," written by a premier American poet at the pinnacle of his craft.

W. S. Merwin just goes on making these beautiful poems that sing of the journey of self into Self, past into present, love into the sublime. He speaks with an individual voice that calls forth our collective voice. These poems are archetypal and personal...the best you can hope to find.

W. S. Merwin has had a long time to develop his unique style of writing. And it's not the average lyricism that draws one to him as a poet; it's the haunting flow of the human voice that lies behind not only the structure of each poem but the meter as well. You won't find any punctuation in this book. Merwin lends us no helpful guide to reading. Unless you're tuned in to the flow of person-speak, it's going to be hard to comes to grips with what he's trying to accomplish. Besides his abilities at form, Merwin also gives us his long autobiographical poem "Testimony." "Lament for the Makers" is a medium length poem describing his poetical influences throughout his life. And since "A Mask for Janus" Merwin has been delighting us with his individualized sense of the poetic. He has not failed us with "The River Sound."

A gripping synopsis of the part that the Roman Army played in history, starting from its initial dominance after it defeated the Greek armies at Pydna in 168 BC, to Vespasian's triumphal parade after Titus' victory over the Jews at Jerusalem. A definate 5-star, must-have book.

This is one of the finest illustrated books about the Roman Army that I have ever read! Its attention to even the most minor historical details is impressive. A must for every student of Roman military history it definitely deserves to be in print again!

This book gives the most thorough and concise description of the Roman Legions from the early republic up through the height of empire. The amount of detail is astonishing, beautifully enhanced and simplified by the gorgeous illustrations.

Bolt achieves with his translation of Moliere's classic comedy what David Hirson did with his 1991 play, La Bete. While remaining true to the general language of Moliere's time and rhyming couplets in iambic pentameter, Bolt is still able to sprinkle modern touches that make the comedy pop out even more. Bolt's British wit sparkles through the French comedy, making for an enjoyable read as well as performance.

Interesting, too, is Nicholas Dromgoole's introduction, which makes some incredibly interesting points yet also keeps in tone with Bolt's take on Moliere's commedia dell'arte-influenced School For Wives.

Whether you're a fan of Moliere or a novice to his works, Bolt's translation of The School for Wives is a fantastic read that keeps the comedy alive, even after 350 years.

I read this play for a French Lit. class (in the original French)and enjoyed Moliere's sense of humor. I laughed out loud as I watched everyone's plans go horribly awry. A great classic social commentary. It centers around one man's obsessive fear of cuckoldry (when a man's wife cheats on him), and the extremes to which he goes to avoid this. He practically emprisons a girl/young woman so that she can be raised properly and will make a faithful and obedient wife when she finally matures. This of course leads him into a muddle of confusion and coincidences as everything goes wrong . . .

I read this play for a college comparative literature course and it was great. Moliere is extremely easy to read and his work is very enjoyable. You can't help but be astonished by Arnolphe's views of women, but his ignorance gives you a good laugh. Enjoy!!

Everything that Mark Doty touches turns to something beautiful, whether he is writing poetry or writing about art as SEEING VENICE illustrates. This tiny book would make a wonderful gift to lovers of Venice, art, poetry, Mark Doty or all of the above. In a brief essay, Mr. Doty illuminates Bernardo Bellotto's (1722-1780) Venetian painting "Grand Canal" completed when the artist was all of 19.

What I find so wonderful about this little treasure is that Mr. Doty writes straightforward, unpretentious prose about a beautiful painting; and, as always, he convinces me that he is accurate in what he says. He apparently does what a lot of us do not-- he simply looks closely at a work of art and makes sensible observations. For example, in this painting he is not sure whether the season is spring or autumn since the artist doesn't indicate a time. "Spring, fall? No way to distinguish, not in this landscape. Do the clouds promise whether to come, or speak of turbulence passed? These boatmen, of course, would know precisely how to read them."

Not content just to explicate, Mr. Doty compares the isolation of the figures here with the works of Edward Hopper. He also contrasts Venice with modern New York City and quotes both the writers Henry James and John Ruskin. James on Venice: "Of all the cities in the world it is the easiest to visit without going there." Mr. Doty concludes that the painting is about time and makes a good argument for this premise.

The book contains 20 or 30 closeup photographs of various details from the painting as well as a large complete picture that folds out for a better view.

Mr. Doty is one of our treasures.I'd love to see him write an entire book on painting.

"Seeing Venice" - just the title is inviting. Who would not want to see this incomparable city, whether for the first time or again and again?

Mark Doty, poet and National Book Critics Circle Award winner, presents the Getty Museum's "View of the Grand Canal" in a lyrical essay accompanied by intriguing details from the painting. Doty calls our attention to various aspects of this masterpiece - water, sky and shadows.

He also focuses on other artists and writers who have been attracted by this mystical city - Henry James, Tintoretto, and the Brownings.

An especially treasured gift, the jacket of this small (approx. 5" by 5") book unfolds to a miniature poster of the painting, which is an outstanding item in the Getty's collection.

Bellotto, the painter, was a nephew of Canaletto and recognized for his idealized views of Venice. This particular painting measures over 4 feet by 7 feet, and limns a cross-section of Venetian society engaged in daily business.

Whether afficionados of Italy or not "Seeing Venice" is a mini treasure.

- Gail Cooke

SEEING VENICE is a truly appropriate title for this small gem of a book that celebrates the presence of the Bellotto 18th Century painting 'View of the Grand Canal' which graces the collection of the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. As in his earlier book STILL LIFE WITH OYSTERS AND LEMON Mark Doty writes succinct conversations with us about just looking at this elegant painting. His intensely poetic vision accompanies us through the various aspects of not only the painting but of the history of Venice. He reminds us that Venice is essentially a relic from the past, loved by writers, painters, composers, and visitors. Why is it so universally loved? 'Part of the world's love for this place must have to do with the fact that it has always seemed ephemeral, doomed. Might the whole city drift away? Certainly it might go under.' Taking us on a visual journey of every aspect of the painting (reflections, the boats, the people, the domes, the endless vista into space, etc.), Doty pauses to remind us how we in this country treat historical buildings and places differently. 'We like our evidence of time at a distance: quaint, pickled in resin or amber. We don't want it near our bodies.' Poignant food for thought.

And as if this remarkably beautiful essay weren't enough the book is one of close details of the grand painting that spans the cover of the dust jacket: Doty's words are 'illustrated' by a careful art editor, unfolding in quality color, production and design. This is a stunning little work of words, history, art and poetry. Would that all great paintings could be so illuminated for us by this gifted man's eyes and words!

As a matter of fact I never read this book but the film caled "Left luggage" was based on that book so please all of you who read this book enjoi whatching this film.

The Shovel and the Loom was originally published in Holland as "Twee Koffers Vol", which means: two loaded suitcases. Actually, the best translation could have been: 'Left Luggage'. This is also the title of the film of the book. The film, starring a.o. Isabella Rossellini and Maximilian Schell and Topol as 'Apfelschnitt' has been directed by Jeroen Krabbe, the Dutch actor/painter and will be released in the U.S. next spring. The film is a breathtaking adaptation of the novel.

Don't read The Shovel and the Loom until you have read Nightfather. Author hits a nerve to all the children of the Holocaust survivors. The social and religious questions we asked during our youth are answered on the pages in a real moving story. There is no known English background of this author but she again illustrates the voice of my generation.

As with Laurence Sterne's TRISTRAM SHANDY, Pirandello's 1921 masterpiece, SIX CHARACTERS IN SEARCH OF AN AUTHOR, was well ahead of its time. It confronts issues in the fields of metaphysics, epistemology, postmodernism (structuralism and deconstruction) as well as prefacing experimental theater, metatheater, and performance art. Pirandello's work is a nearly flawless play which breeches the topics of self-identity (a la Descartes), truth and illusion (before Albee), and aesthetics (questioning the legitimizing factor in Aristotle's theory of catharsis). Furthermore, it forces the audience--as too many works of art fail to do--to think without lapsing into philosophic didacticism. Highly recommended.

Pirandello had writer's block. Luisa felt sorry for him. "Just write whatever's in your head", she said, "That's what you're always telling me. Everyone who's ever written a play-- I suppose that leaves out the critics and the university professors--knows that YOU don't write the play, you let the CHARACTERS write the play. Here", she said, "have a glass of wine. It'll help relax you." Two days later, when he was done, Luigi took the manuscript over to Alphonse, the literature teacher. Alphonse declared, after scanning it, "You've written a masterpiece!" "Really?" said Pirandello, "I mean, of course!" Alphonse stood up and gestured grandly with his arms, saying "Ah, the metaphysical ramifications! Reality and the imagination! You've started Postmodernism!" So Luigi did a little dance and headed home to bed.

He must be around here somewhere. Let me see, hello? Mr. Reviewer? Ms. Reviewer? How I am I supposed to start this? I guess I am a review for the Luigi Pirandello play, "Six Characters in Search of an Author." What am I supposed to say about it? I guess I could say that it is a wonderful piece about the search for truth. A reflection of the human experience. Dazzled and question ridden, on a journey to nowhere. But I haven't even read the thing! Mr. Reviewer? Ms. Reviewer? Tell me what it's about so I could have some idea to tell the readers out there. What? I can't hear you. Pirndello's best play? A post modern triumph? An easily stageable highway? Substitute for butter? What? I give up, you wicked person. Find someone else to be your slave, I am going to sleep now

Polish poetry is among the richest in the world, but a formidable linguistic and cultural barrier prevents it from being better known abroad. Szymborska, along with her compatriot Zbigniew Herbert, crosses that barrier rather successfully. One of her advantages is that her poetry (like Herbert's) is based more on the play of ideas than that of words or sounds. Polish poets tend to be less word-drunk than their Russian counterparts, perhaps due to the differing qualities of their respective languages, and Szymborska is one of the most sober of all in this regard. Her work is unpretentious, free of unnecessary adornment, and invariably thoughtful. Language is her assistant, rather than a selfish entity which always wants to be the center of attention.

The translations adhere closely to the originals and make it easy to follow the flow of ideas. The originals are printed on the facing page (something I think should be standard practice with ALL translations of poetry). The Swedish Academy--which has a record of spurning hacks like Joyce, Ibsen, and Tolstoy in favor of such geniuses as Karlfeldt, Gjellerup, and Spitteler--was wise to give the Nobel to Szymborska. If you like her work, you'll probably enjoy that of her compatriots Milosz, Herbert, Norwid, Mickiewicz, Kochanowski, and others too numerous to name here.

Of all the compilations, I prefer this one as it gives you both the original Polish as well as the translated English. So if you are feeling ambitious, you can take a stab at the Polish. This is the best translation of her work by far -- it retains the lyrical intent of the author without being too literal. The poetry dances off your toungue and into your mind. If you read another version, you are missing out!

Wislawa Szymborska writes with the wit and freshness of the American beat poets, layered with the sence of history and emotional depth that can only come from living through the last seventy years of turmoil in Europe. She has a very musical style. She begins by building descriptive lines, then rises to a staccato rediscovery of her subject, then resloving each poem with a kind of rational passion that is rare in even the most accomplished poets. This book has the added advantage of being the only one of her books that has been translated by people who not only know both tongues, but who understand language, meter, lyric and nuance. More poems are offered in View with a Grain of Sand, but not with the level of quality of translation. Highly recommened for those who do not want sentimentality, endless rhyming and dull subject matter. Szymborska is deserving off all of the attention she is finally receiving, and more.