We were very excited to see our PBS Bulletin in Shakespeare & Company last week!
Our Translation Thursday blog is back today, and, keeping to the French theme, we’d like to suggest three recent poetry books in translation bringing to English-speaking readers the work of influential twentieth-century French poets.
Don’t forget to take advantage of our Translation Thursday discount for an exclusive 30% off any of the books below by using the promotional code TRANSLATIONTHURSDAY at checkout on our website!
Here is our list:
#1 Storm Under The Skin: Selected Poems 1927 – 1954, poems by Henri Michaux, edited and translated by Jane Draycott (Two Rivers Press, 2017) – The Poetry Book Society Autumn 2017 Recommended Translation, Storm Under The Skin is a selection of poems and prose-poems from a powerful twentieth-century French writer. The book also includes poems written on the eve of war and during the Occupation.
#2 Les Chambres by Louis Aragon, translated by John Manson (Smokestack Books, 2018) – Aragon’s last collection, first published in 1969, Les Chambres is a beautiful and melancholy meditation on time, age and love, indeed it is subtitled poème du temps qui ne passe pas.
#3 Surrealist, Lover, Resistant by Robert Desnos, translated and introduced by Timothy Adès (Arc Publications, 2017, bilingual English/French edition) – A selection of nearly 300 poems from three collections by one of France’s most exciting twentieth-century surrealist. The chosen poems encompass a diverse range of topics, from anguish to love, and span from youthful material to poetry from the time of the Occupation.
Our PBS Bulletin in Shakespeare & Company!
If you’re interested in finding out more about poetry in translation, why not become a Poetry Book Society translation member? Every quarter our expert poet selector George Szirtes chooses his favourite new poetry in translation book to deliver to our members alongside a full commentary in our Bulletin. It’s the perfect way to keep up to date with all the latest poetry in translation books, including dual language editions from a wide range of languages worldwide.