-
News that Stays News from the 11th Century
The poems below are from Vulture in a Cage: Poems by Solomon Ibn Gabirol, translated from the Hebrew by Raymond P. Scheindlin. A beautiful and challenging poet, Ibn Gabirol seems strikingly modern in his methods, at least as brought over into English by Scheindlin. For more information, see Mitchell Abidor‘s fine review of Vulture in a Cage here. Behold the rose: Her body’s like her garment. When you look at her, she blushes like a bride before her husband, or like a girl who runs out screaming, her hands upon her head in horror. * Bring me to the vineyard, friend.Read More
-
Me and Julio (Redux)
Just a few more passages from Diary of Andrés Fava, which—like any book by Cortázar—is a strange and wonderful reading experience. The first passage demonstrates qualities I love about this writer: a profound, clear-eyed sympathy for even “unimportant” creatures combined with a classical devotion to the truth of any situation. Any writer, in prose or verse, would do well to study the way he shapes these seven sentences…. I was arriving in Chacarita to catch the subway when I saw a little white dog die.Read More
-
Me and Julio Down by the Playa
Julio Cortázar Per my annual habit of reading Spanish masters in México, I’m indulging in another Archipelago Books offering of Julio Cortázar, his early-but-posthumously-published Diary of Andrés Fava. The translation by Anne McLean is smooth, witty, obscure where it needs to be, and altogether delightful.Read More
Joseph Hutchison, Colorado Poet Laureate 2014-2019, has published 20 collections of poems and edited or co-edited three poetry anthologies. He currently directs two master’s-level programs for University College at the University of Denver: Professional Creative Writing and Arts & Culture Management. Joe lives with his wife, Melody Madonna, in the mountains southwest of Denver, Colorado, the city where he was born. 
