The Back Country [Paperback]

Gary Snyder (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 17, 1971

“A reaffirmation of a back country of the spirit."—Kirkus Reviews

This collection is made up of four sections: "Far West"—poems of the Western mountain country where, as a young man. Gary Snyder worked as a logger and forest ranger; "Far East"—poems written between 1956 and 1964 in Japan where he studied Zen at the monastery in Kyoto; "Kali"—poems inspired by a visit to India and his reading of Indian religious texts, particularly those of Shivaism and Tibetan Buddhism; and "Back"—poems done on his return to this country in 1964 which look again at our West with the eyes of India and Japan. The book concludes with a group of translations of the Japanese poet Miyazawa Kenji (1896-1933), with whose work Snyder feels a close affinity. The title, The Back Country, has three major associations; wilderness. the "backward" countries, and the “back country" of the mind with its levels of being in the unconscious.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Back Country is one of Gary Snyder's most serious engagements with Eastern culture and thought. Much of the book works to achieve a perspective by means of contrast, as in "Hitch Haiku," a series of haiku (a Japanese form of imagistic, syllabic verse) mostly set in the American West. Perhaps the strongest poem is "Oil," in which Snyder envisions a tanker as a needle bringing our addicted nation "long injections of pure oil."

Product Details

• Paperback: 150 pages
• Publisher: New Directions (January 17, 1971)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811201945
• ISBN-13: 978-0811201940
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #220,136 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, Understated, Moving Poetry, August 5, 2000

By 

J. Mullin (Plantation, FL USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Back Country (Paperback)

I had to read many of the poems in this volume while taking a college course in Beat Literature, but in this reviewer's opinion the careful, Eastern-oriented poetry by Snyder has a mystical quality sorely lacking in poetry by writers like Kerouac, Corso, Ferlinghetti and even Ginsberg. Snyder captures the mountains of the pacific northwest, human relationships, campfires, and the mysteries of the far east in a careful and understated style. He sometimes makes use of the ancient Japanese style of haiku, and in all of his poems he seems to have rich, abundant ideas which he is able to convey in relatively few words. I have come back to this volume repeatedly over the years, and it always reveals a new secret and joy each time. Think of Snow Falling on Cedars in poetry form.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing!, May 27, 2000

By 

Nathan T N Schreiber - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Back Country (Paperback)

This collection of poetry changed my life, I was deeply engaged with each installment!

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic Gary Snyder, October 24, 2010

By 

V. Scott (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Back Country (Paperback)

This is the classic Gary Snyder. Includes A Berry Feast, which is itself a classic Snyder poem. It is interesting to read his later writing after reading this, and to follow his transitions through life. He is a marvelous poet, a lover of life and of the physical world, in which he understands his place. He is zen exuberance at its best.