Customer Reviews

Selected Poems and Letters (Penguin Classics)

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There are two types of poetry translators -- those who translate precisely what the poet has written, and those who make small embellishments to improve the sound of the poem in English. I prefer the former. Even though the poem no longer rhymes and might not sound like something someone would write today, it is closer to the original meaning.

Unfortunately, this book falls into the second category. I prefer Wallace Fowlie's "Rimbaud" published in 1967 (still available on Amazon). It contains the complete works of Rimbaud, plus some letters he wrote. Fowlie also has a newer translation written with Seth Whidden and published in 2005, which I have not read. If you know any French at all, you will see what I'm talking about when you read these books (or search inside them here on Amazon). The original poems are presented first in French, then in English, so it's easy to see if the translator has added his own flourishes, or has remained true to the original text.