Description

By (author) Darwish Mahmoud; Edited by Antoon Sinan; Edited by El-Zein Amira; Translated by Akash Munir; Translated by Forché, Carolyn; Foreword by Joudah, Fady

Short /annotation:
The author is a literary rarity: at once critically acclaimed as one of the most important poets in the Arabic language, and beloved as the voice of his people. A legend in Palestine, his lyrics are sung by fieldworkers and schoolchildren. This collection spans his entire career, nearly four decades, revealing a range of expression and form.

:
Mahmoud Darwish is a literary rarity: at once critically acclaimed as one of the most important poets in the Arabic language, and beloved as the voice of his people. A legend in Palestine, his lyrics are sung by fieldworkers and schoolchildren. He has assimilated some of the world”s oldest literary traditions while simultaneously struggling to open new possibilities for poetry. This collection spans Darwish”s entire career, nearly four decades, revealing an impressive range of expression and form. A splendid team of translators has collaborated with the poet on these new translations, which capture Darwish”s distinctive voice and spirit. Fady Joudah”s foreword, new to this edition, addresses Darwish”s enduring legacy following his death in 2008.

Table of contents:
AcknowledgmentsMunir AkashIntroductionMunir Akash and Carolyn ForcheFROM Fewer Roses (1986) I Will Slog over This RoadAnother Road in the RoadWere It Up to Me to Begin AgainOn This EarthI Belong ThereAddresses for the Soul, outside This PlaceEarth Presses against UsWe Journey towards a HomeWe Travel Like All PeopleAthens AirportI Talk Too MuchWe Have the Right to Love AutumnThe Last Train Has StoppedOn the Slope, Higher Than the Sea, They SleptHe Embraces His MurdererWinds Shift against UsNeighing on the SlopeOther Barbarians Will ComeThey Would Love to See Me DeadWhen the Martyrs Go to SleepThe Night ThereWe Went to AdenAnother Damascus in DamascusThe Flute CriedIn This HymnFROMI See What I Want to See(1993) The HoopoeFROMWhy Have You Left the Horse Alone?(1995) I See My Ghost Coming from AfarA Cloud in My HandsThe Kindhearted VillagersThe Owl”s NightThe Everlasting Indian FigThe Lute of IsmaelThe Strangers” PicnicThe Raven”s InkLike the Letter “N” in the Qur”anIvory CombsThe Death of the PhoenixPoetic RegulationsExcerpts from the Byzantine Odes of Abu FirasThe Dreamers Pass from One Sky to AnotherA Rhyme for the Odes (Mu”allaqat)Night That Overflows My BodyThe Gypsy Woman Has a Tame SkyFROMA Bed for the Stranger(1999) We Were without a PresentSonnet IIThe Stranger Finds Himself in the StrangerThe Land of the Stranger, the Serene LandInanna”s MilkWho Am I, without Exile?Lesson from the Kama SutraMural (2000) MuralThree Poems (before 1986) A Soldier Dreams of White TulipsAs Fate Would Have ItFour Personal AddressesGlossary

Review quote:
“Darwish”s complex linguistic negotiations of deeply contested places, on the earth and in the mind, demand and sustain serious reading and discussion. . . . [Forché”s] fluid and precise approach to translation is everywhere apparent here.”

Review quote:
“These translations of Mahmoud Darwish’s marvelous poems reveal the lifelong development of a major world poet. The book is a gift to other poets and lovers of poetry. It’s also an important contribution to current and future discourse on culture and politics.”

Review quote:
“This book is a beautiful rendering of beautiful verse. It is an important contribution in making accessible an important figure in modern Arab culture. Unfortunately, It Was Paradise demonstrates that Darwish is a poet of our time as well as a poet of all times.”

Review quote:
“This book—perhaps the most impor