Customer Reviews

The Gary Snyder Reader: Prose, Poetry and Translations 1952-1998 (v. 1)

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Gary Snyder's power appears to come from mountain, meandering and meditation. In this thick sampler we visit his life to age sixty-eight through notes, prose and poems. The soil of his writings range across a fire lookout station in the Cascade Range, a Japanese Zen temple, the engine room of a Pacific freighter, an audience with the Dalai Lama, work and climbs with Ginsberg, Kerouac, Lew Welch, and Nanao Sakaki, travel in Botswana and Zimbabwe with his sons. The essence of his power is nature. "Nature is not a place to visit, it is home-and within that home territory there are more familiar and less familiar places." Two sons, one Pulitzer, many other awards so far. He writes, he reads, he teaches. One hopes that he never tires of planting words in the soil that is us. If there are any legitimate Earth heroes, Gary Snyder is one.

Gary Snyder is an amazing person. He is an intellect. He is a poet. He is a teacher, a traveler, and he is a deeply spiritual man. He lives the life that we should all attempt to lead, a conscious thinking, methodical, contemplative life, asking questions arriving at conclusions and taking action.

The Gary Snyder Reader is a good compilation of his life's work, the variety inside includes essay, interview, and poetry. This book is a well rounded view of his feelings and belief's about nature, and that of the nature of the soul, the nature of man. I agree with other reviews written here about the power of Synder's writing. His is a strong voice which is able to make a terrific argument about everything from the history of the Christian church and some reasons for underlying social perils to making a call for more activism in one's own community. Make a difference, be responsible, see things for what they are, yes this is all there.

There is also the voice of pain, loss, suffering, anger, and very deep love. Above all else, one REALLY gets the feeling that Synder loves, passionately. Gary Snyder is an extremely talented writer and poet. The same voice that won the Pulitzer is still here. Do more than read and enjoy his works, read and be changed.

most of us first heard of snyder though kerouac's dharma bums. and i must confess that is why i was 1st attracted to him and his writings. but to list snyder as just another beat it not only inaccurate it does a diservice to him, his writings and his fearless intellect. snyder is not only a great poet but is also an insightful naturalist and a true zen master. this anthology is actually a zen bible for the 21st century, filled with enjoyable reading and great insights. these writings would make the soul of han shan dance, and sakyamuni smile. this is one of my favorite books. just reading it will lighten your spirit and make your soul dance with joy.

Gary Snyder has been an inspiration to me and to a lot of other people for many years now. This book is a joy to read because it gives us so much of his poetry, as well as his philosophy of life, nature and Buddhism over a course of 46 years. Much of it has been pulled from his various books, but reading it again after time has passed brings a new perspective and an added appreciation for the work. Thanks Gary, for doing the real work for all these years.

Snyder has a way of showing things in life, that the rest of us miss because we are to busy living. Basically I can't say enoough good things aboout his work.

Like many readers, I was introduced to Gary Snyder as the character "Japhy Ryder" in Jack Kerouac's novel, "The Dharma Bums." When I found out that "Japhy", who is one of Kerouac's most memorable characters, was based on the poet Gary Snyder, I had to read his works.

This collection of Snyder's prose and poetry is an excellent introduction to the works of a man I now consider a national treasure, not just for his literary works, but as an environmentalist and natural philosopher. His prose is inspiring, revealing the ethics of a man who practices what he preaches, and his poetry is exhilarating both intellectually and spiritually. His translations from the Chinese are rendered in such a way that they are easily accessible to western readers.

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in Snyder's works and Beat literature in general.

Gary Snyder's writing style is clever and a part of poetic history--beat. This is a different kind of poetry. It's a good read.

This is an excellent compilation of Gary Snyder's work to date. Comprenhencive and handsomely bound. A book to keep as well as read

This book by Gary Snyder is probably my favorite book that I have bought in the last 10 years...