Prague with Fingers of Rain [Paperback]

Vitezslav Nezval (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 13, 2009 | ISBN-10: 1852248165 | ISBN-13: 978-1852248161

Czech writer Vitezslav Nezval (1900-58) was one of the leading Surrealist poets of the 20th century. Prague with Fingers of Rain is his classic 1936 collection in which Prague's many-sided life-its glamorous history, motley weather, diverse population- becomes symbolic of what is contradictory and paradoxical in life itself. Mixing real and surreal, Nezval evokes life's contradictoriness in a series of psalm-like poems of puzzled love and generous humanity. Translated from Czech by Ewald Osers. Nezval was perhaps the most prolific writer in Prague during the 1920s and 30s. An original member of the avant-garde group of artists, Devetsil, he was a founding figure of the Poetist movement.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Czech writer Vitezslav Nezval (1900-58) was one of the leading Surrealist poets of the 20th century. He was perhaps the most prolific writer in Prague during the 1920s and 30s. An original member of the avant-garde group of artists Devetsil (Butterbur, literally: Nine Forces), he was a founding figure of the Poetist movement. His numerous books included poetry collections, experimental plays and novels, memoirs, essays and translations. His best work is from the interwar period. Along with Karel Teige, Jindrich Aetyrsku, and Toyen, Nezval frequently travelled to Paris, engaging with the French surrealists. Forging a friendship with Andre Breton and Paul Aeluard, he was instrumental in founding The Surrealist Group of Czechoslovakia in 1934 (the first such group outside of France), serving as editor of the group's journal Surrealismus. Vitezslav Nezval was published in the Penguin Modern European Poets series in Three Czech Poets (1971), a volume shared with Antonin Bartusek and Josef Hanzlik, translated by Ewald Osers and George Theiner. More recent translations of his work include Antilyrik and Other Poems, tr. Jerome Rothenberg & Milos Sovak (Green Integer, 2001), Edison, tr. Ewald Osers (Dvorak, 2003), Edition 69, tr. Jed Slast (Twisted Spoon, 2004), Valerie and Her Week of Wonders, tr. David Short (Twisted Spoon, 2005), and Prague with Fingers of Rain, tr. Ewald Osers (Bloodaxe Books, 2009).

Product Details

• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Bloodaxe Books Ltd (November 13, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1852248165
• ISBN-13: 978-1852248161
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,928,892 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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1 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Prague With Fingers of Rain, February 19, 2010

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Joellen Mcburney - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Prague with Fingers of Rain (Paperback)

I was deeply impressed with the beauty and deep feeling in his words. I am a political science student and have been researching the early days of the Polish people. Their struggle for a secure government had a deep and lasting effect on the young people who wrote of their pathos and degradation that was a constant reminder that their days were numbered.