STRAY BIRDS [Paperback]

Rabindranath Tagore (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2008

"Collected here are three hundred twenty short poems by Rabindranath Tagore. They were written in Bengali before being translated into English by Tagore. These poems are beautiful, thought provoking, and somewhat reminiscent of Haiku. Stray birds of summer come to my window to sing and fly away. And yellow leaves of autumn, which have no songs, flutter and fall there with a sigh."

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Rabindranath Tagore was a Nobel Laureate for Literature (1913) as well as one of IndiaÂ’s greatest poets and the composer of independent IndiaÂ’s national anthem, as well as that of Bangladesh. He wrote successfully in all literary genres, but was first and foremost a poet, publishing more than 50 volumes of poetry. He was a Bengali writer who was born in Calcutta and later traveled around the world. He was knighted in 1915, but gave up his knighthood after the massacre of demonstrators in India in 1919.

Product Details

• Paperback: 56 pages
• Publisher: Wilder Publications (October 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1604595337
• ISBN-13: 978-1604595338
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #901,685 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #60 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Poetry > Inspirational & Religious

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Window to Tagore, September 27, 2010

By 

Reflection Haiku "Lily Wang, Author" (California, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Stray Birds (Classic Reprint) (Paperback)

STRAY BIRDS comprises three hundred twenty six short verses or aphorisms by Tagore, the Indian Poet Laureate, whose love of nature and simplicity as well as his regal command of poetic words is crystalized by this precious volume of poetry. Tagore won Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913 with Gitanjali (Song Offerings) and this book, published in 1916, and translated by the poet into English himself offers new readers a quick window to peek into the greatness of the Tagore literary temple. Tagore spiritualizes nature into the experiences of human existence:

Find your beauty, my heart, from the world's movement,

like the boat that has the grace of the wind and the water (255)

The Stray Birds of summer that took flight from Tagore's window a century ago, have flown into my heart to sing and to stay.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Of all his English works, this is a must have, July 27, 2010

By 

Haotian (Williamstown, MA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Stray Birds (Classic Reprint) (Paperback)

To those unfamiliar with Tagore, he was an Indian polymath who was the first Asian to ever win a Nobel Prize for Literature. His works are culturally and religiously driven, but contain the common sense and moral aptitude that you would expect from Aesop.

To those familiar with Tagore, I highly recommend this one. The prose is almost similar to simple quotes; each "poem" is no longer than 2 or 3 sentences. However, the imagery employed gives the reader a full sense of the wonders that he is describing. You can read the whole book in one sitting, or multiple sittings since there is no plot to follow. This makes it a great reader for avid or casual readers.

25 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars just like the music, picture, idea, how to love and live mix, May 25, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Stray Birds (Paperback)

good books always let you enjoy all your life. who do not want a beautiful around you? even sometimes the spirit of the book could make you defence the difficult situation of the life and refresh you when feel very tire and disappointed for what happened in your life. I just like it and will read it again and again to rich myself. thank you for reading my writing and hope this world become better and better with the help of good books, good poems like what Tagore did here.