Samarkand & Other Markets I Have Known [Paperback]

Wole Soyinka (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 25, 2003 | ISBN-10: 0413772551 | ISBN-13: 978-0413772558

First collection of poems for ten years by the Nobel Prize-winning poet and dramatist. Many of these poems were written whilst Soyinka was in enforced travel after a price was placed on his head by Sani Abacha, the Nigerian dictator, and thus address themes of journey and exile.

"One of the liveliest, most exciting writers in the world today."-The New York Times

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Methuen Publishing Ltd (March 25, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0413772551
• ISBN-13: 978-0413772558
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,027,541 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A powerful poetic journey, May 16, 2003

By 

Michael J. Mazza - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Samarkand & Other Markets I Have Known (Paperback)

"Samarkand and Other Markets I Have Known" is an 80-page collection of poems by Wole Soyinka. The author bio at the beginning of the book notes that in 1986 the Nigerian-born Soyinka became the first African writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Overall this book has a global, multicultural and multifaith vision. Soyinka writes about writers and writing itself, personal struggle, economic injustice, etc. His writing has an elegant muscularity; his voice is learned and serious, passionate and politically engaged.

I felt that some of the longer poems didn't quite hold up all the way through. But there are some really stunning standouts in the entire collection. "Doctored Vision," about a poet's consultation with an optician, is an amazing narrative poem that is rich in symbolic potential. "Twelve Canticles for the Zealot. . ." is a powerful exploration of religious intolerance and violence.

Overall, this is a worthwhile volume by a poet who I see as a kindred spirit to Walt Whitman, Audre Lorde, and Pablo Neruda. If you want to be a real citizen of the world, I recommend you read Soyinka.