Amazon.com: Unattainable Earth, (9780880011020): Czeslaw Milosz: Books

Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Unattainable Earth,
 
See larger image
 
Tell the Publisher!
I'd like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Unattainable Earth, [Paperback]

Czeslaw Milosz (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)


Available from these sellers.


Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Hardcover --  
Paperback --  

Customers Who Viewed This Item Also Viewed


Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This new volume by the 1980 Nobel laureate combines poetry, prose commentary, and "inscripts"quotations from other writersto create an intimate, multi-layered chorus of voices exploring themes of loss, the inadequacy of language, and the imaginative search for spiritual transcendence. Milosz does not entirely trust language; it is never an end in itself. Thus his verse often expresses contradictions: "I think that I am here, on this earth,/ to present a report on it, but to whom I don't know./ As if I were sent so that whatever takes place/has meaning because it changes into memory." If there is meaning, it is "unattainable." A poet of essences rather than of forms, Milosz, despite his bleak outlook, maintains a sense of wonder at being alive. Lyric and discursive, erotic and philosophical, this is a complex, deeply affecting work. Robert Hudzik, P.L. of Cincinnati & Hamilton Cty.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Language Notes

Text: English, Polish (translation) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 140 pages
  • Publisher: Ecco (September 21, 1987)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0880011025
  • ISBN-13: 978-0880011020
  • Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,624,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

 

Customer Reviews

3 Reviews
5 star:
 (1)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.3 out of 5 stars (3 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars This book goes everywhere I go, October 4, 2001
This review is from: Unattainable Earth, (Paperback)
I bought this book in 1990, and it's travelled with me everywhere I've been since then. Not that I'm constantly reading it -- as a matter of fact, I think I last opened it a year ago -- rather, I think of it as a medicine cabinet of little insights and stories: wisdom in distilled, titrated doses, a portable collection of innoculations against quotidian ennui, antidotes for social blindness. It's hardly Milosz's best book; but it represents something of an apotheosis of the personal literary journal, and as such it's a good reference or example to have on hand. I sincerely recommend it.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Unattainable Earth, September 24, 2000
This review is from: Unattainable Earth, (Paperback)
So far Unattainable Earth has been awesome. No, I haven't finished the book, but I've read enough to get a biased opinion about it. I'm determined to finish it because I like it a lot. The author put together different poems together from his and other authors' works. The poems are very well expressed, and showed many emotions. One thing that I liked the best was the fact that the author explained how you can never fully express yourself in poetry or anything else because we just don't have words for some things (p. 40). For me, I have a deep sense of love and hate that just can't be put into words. I do my best to write it in poetry, but it never works. I only know what I feel while the reader of my poetry gets just a glimpse of my true feelings. The poems written in Unattainable Earth are very descriptive and metaphoric. They don't all rhyme, but free verse is my favorite type of poetry. "Paradise"(p. 5-6) and "The Boy"(p. 52) have to be my favorite poems so far. I interpreted "Paradise" as being a poem of questioning and confusion. In seems that the author trys to describe paradise, but what is described isn't paradise at all. I love questioning deep subjects as paradise, love, and life. What are the real definitions of these words? I still have yet to learn because no one has been able to tell me. "The Boy" seems to be more lonely. I get the feeling of separation when I read it. I see the whole poem as a metaphor. It just shows how imperfect us humans are. The "gypsy girl" points out all these things we have in our lives. When you look up close you see an innocent boy, but when you look at the whole scheme you notice all the imperfections and you notice how you are like that boy. I gave this book a four-star rating because it is an awesome book. The only problem I had reading it was that when the book went from to inscript to poem to inscript I got confused. I got the mind set of reading poems, so I tried to read the inscript with a rhythm, and it didn't work to well. I love the book and I would reccomend anyone with a open mind to read it.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Unattainable Earth, September 24, 2000
This review is from: Unattainable Earth, (Paperback)
So far Unattainable Earth has been awesome. No, I haven't finished the book, but I've read enough to get a biased opinion about it. I'm determined to finish it because I like it a lot. The author put together different poems together from his and other authors' works. The poems are very well expressed, and showed many emotions. One thing that I liked the best was the fact that the author explained how you can never fully express yourself in poetry or anything else because we just don't have words for some things (p. 40). For me, I have a deep sense of love and hate that just can't be put into words. I do my best to write it in poetry, but it never works. I only know what I feel while the reader of my poetry gets just a glimpse of my true feelings. The poems written in Unattainable Earth are very descriptive and metaphoric. They don't all rhyme, but free verse is my favorite type of poetry. "Paradise"(p. 5-6) and "The Boy"(p. 52) have to be my favorite poems so far. I interpreted "Paradise" as being a poem of questioning and confusion. In seems that the author trys to describe paradise, but what is described isn't paradise at all. I love questioning deep subjects as paradise, love, and life. What are the real definitions of these words? I still have yet to learn because no one has been able to tell me. "The Boy" seems to be more lonely. I get the feeling of separation when I read it. I see the whole poem as a metaphor. It just shows how imperfect us humans are. The "gypsy girl" points out all these things we have in our lives. When you look up close you see an innocent boy, but when you look at the whole scheme you notice all the imperfections and you notice how you are like that boy. I gave this book a four-star rating because it is an awesome book. The only problem I had reading it was that when the book went from to inscript to poem to inscript I got confused. I got the mind set of reading poems, so I tried to read the inscript with a rhythm, and it didn't work to well. I love the book and I would reccomend anyone with a open mind to read it.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Only search this product's reviews



What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums



So You'd Like to...


Create a guide


Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject