Sounds, Feelings, Thoughts [Paperback]

Wislawa Szymborska (Author), Magnus J. Krynski (Translator), Robert A. Maguire (Translator)

Book Description

Series: Lockert Library of Poetry in Translation | Publication Date: August 1, 1981

Translated and Introduced by Magnus J. Krynski and Robert A. Maguire Regarded as one of the best representatives since World War II of the rich and ancient art of poetry in Poland, Wislawa Szymborska (b. 1923) is, in the translators' words, "that rarest of phenomena: a serious poet who commands a large audience in her native land." The seventy poems in this bilingual edition are among the largest and most representative offering of her work in English, with particular emphasis on the period since 1967. They illustrate virtually all her major themes and most of her important techniques.

Describing Szymborka's poetry, Magnus Krynski and Robert Maguire write that her verse is marked by high seriousness, delightful inventiveness, a prodigal imagination, and enormous technical skill. She writes of the diversity, plenitude, and richness of the world, taking delight in observing and naming its phenomena. She looks on with wonder, astonishment, and amusement, but almost never with despair.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

"This volume reveals a poet of startling originality and deep sympathy," said LJ's reviewer of this 1981 collection of 70 poems by the then relatively unknown Polish poet who has now won the Nobel Prize for Literature. Though the poems deal with loss, "hers is not a voice of despair, but one capable of balancing loss with wonder" (LJ 9/1/81).
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

[Szymborska] is like so many Eastern European writers, an ironist. She writes, especially in her later years, a plain, almost bony verse, and she can stand for the survival, not just of the conscience but of imagination, in this last half-century. -- The Washington Post Book World

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Product Details

• Paperback: 261 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (August 1, 1981)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691013802
• ISBN-13: 978-0691013800
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #723,378 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A deserving Nobelist, February 15, 2001

By 

Scott Spires (Prague, Czech Republic) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sounds, Feelings, Thoughts (Paperback)

Polish poetry is among the richest in the world, but a formidable linguistic and cultural barrier prevents it from being better known abroad. Szymborska, along with her compatriot Zbigniew Herbert, crosses that barrier rather successfully. One of her advantages is that her poetry (like Herbert's) is based more on the play of ideas than that of words or sounds. Polish poets tend to be less word-drunk than their Russian counterparts, perhaps due to the differing qualities of their respective languages, and Szymborska is one of the most sober of all in this regard. Her work is unpretentious, free of unnecessary adornment, and invariably thoughtful. Language is her assistant, rather than a selfish entity which always wants to be the center of attention.

The translations adhere closely to the originals and make it easy to follow the flow of ideas. The originals are printed on the facing page (something I think should be standard practice with ALL translations of poetry). The Swedish Academy--which has a record of spurning hacks like Joyce, Ibsen, and Tolstoy in favor of such geniuses as Karlfeldt, Gjellerup, and Spitteler--was wise to give the Nobel to Szymborska. If you like her work, you'll probably enjoy that of her compatriots Milosz, Herbert, Norwid, Mickiewicz, Kochanowski, and others too numerous to name here.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent poetry, in superior translation, June 10, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Sounds, Feelings, Thoughts (Paperback)

Wislawa Szymborska writes with the wit and freshness of the American beat poets, layered with the sence of history and emotional depth that can only come from living through the last seventy years of turmoil in Europe. She has a very musical style. She begins by building descriptive lines, then rises to a staccato rediscovery of her subject, then resloving each poem with a kind of rational passion that is rare in even the most accomplished poets. This book has the added advantage of being the only one of her books that has been translated by people who not only know both tongues, but who understand language, meter, lyric and nuance. More poems are offered in View with a Grain of Sand, but not with the level of quality of translation. Highly recommened for those who do not want sentimentality, endless rhyming and dull subject matter. Szymborska is deserving off all of the attention she is finally receiving, and more.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best translation by far, September 5, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Sounds, Feelings, Thoughts (Paperback)

Of all the compilations, I prefer this one as it gives you both the original Polish as well as the translated English. So if you are feeling ambitious, you can take a stab at the Polish. This is the best translation of her work by far -- it retains the lyrical intent of the author without being too literal. The poetry dances off your toungue and into your mind. If you read another version, you are missing out!