A volume bringing back into print three volumes by the most celebrated American poet currently writing.
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Editorial Reviews
From Library Journal
As a counterpart to The Second Four Books (Copper Canyon, 1993), the publisher collects here the poetry of supremely accomplished poet, memoirist, and translator Merwin over six years, gathering three smaller volumes. These poems of what probably ought to be understood as the poet's middle period show the reactions of an outstanding creative mind to the recurrent concerns of poetry?death, travel, love, and change. Their music lies not so much in the sounds of words as in the images themselves: the "long jagged broken string of bird song" made by unsorted keys in "The Apple"; or, in "Kore," "the candles [that] flutter on the stairs of your voice." These quiet, unpunctuated poems often feel like translations, not so much from another language as from another condition. An excellent opportunity for libraries to begin or complete their collection of the works of one of our most important poets; highly recommended.?Graham Christian, Andover-Harvard Theological Lib., Cambridge, Mass.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
To achieve the world-class stature Merwin has so rightly earned, a poet must start off strong, and Merwin was no exception. This volume reclaims the long out-of-print collections The Compass Flower (1977) and Opening the Hand (1983) in their glorious entirety, as well as the 1982 suite, "Feathers from the Hill," poems of exquisite clarity that evince Merwin's sensuality, virtuosity, and vital sense of discovery. The title Flower & Hand is perfect: Merwin's poetic sensibility is as open and receptive as a flower or an open hand, and the hand itself--an instrument of exploration, expression, and union--is emblematic of his conceptual grasp and dexterity. And both flowers and hands are alive, allusions to the profoundly organic nature of Merwin's poems. Merwin merges fully with the landscapes he so lovingly describes, metamorphosing himself and others (especially women he loves) into a blade of grass, a palm, a spring, a stone. These are works of supple perception, dreamy passion, and eternal beauty. Donna Seaman
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More About the Author
W.S. Merwin is the 17th Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry of the United States. He is the author of over fifty books of poetry, prose, and translations. He has earned every major literary prize, most recently the National Book Award for 'Migration: New and Selected Poems' and the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for 'The Shadow of Sirius.' He lives in Hawaii where he raises endangered palm trees.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
'Flower & Hand': a flower in my hand.,
By
This review is from: Flower & Hand: Poems, 1977-1983 (Paperback)
Yes, this book is like a flower in my hand. W. S. Merwin is a master of subtle emotions using mostly images to communicate his meanings. He doesn't hit you over the head with importance, but you get the importance of his poems anyway, if you read and listen carefully. He is very delicate with his words and precise. I highly recommend this book to any one who enjoys poetry.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful poetry,
By A Customer
This review is from: Flower & Hand: Poems, 1977-1983 (Paperback)
This book is composed of reprints of earlier volumes--as many of Merwin's volumes are now being combined and republished. The poems are beautiful and thought-provoking. Best are the poems from "The Compass Flower"--some of love, some of nature. A master poet.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
In the first chamber of the heart all the gloves are hanging but two the hands are bare as they come through the door the bell rope is moving without them they move forward cupped as though holding water there is a bird a thing in their palms in this chamber there is no color Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
pineapple fields New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
In the first chamber of the heart all the gloves are hanging but two the hands are bare as they come through the door the bell rope is moving without them they move forward cupped as though holding water there is a bird a thing in their palms in this chamber there is no color Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
pineapple fields New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 11
books:
See all 11 books this book cites
- Opening the Hand by W. S. Merwin in Front Matter, and page 100
- The Second Four Books of Poems: The Moving Target / The Lice / The Carrier of Ladders / Writings to an Unfinished Accompaniment by W. S. Merwin in Front Matter
- The Rain in the Trees by W. S. Merwin in Front Matter
- The Selected Poems of Osip Mandelstam (New York Review Books Classics) by Osip Mandelstam in Front Matter
- Moving Target by W. S. Merwin in Front Matter
See all 11 books this book cites
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