Scan barcode
shoshin's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
Each poem is a masterpiece.
lghrndn's review against another edition
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.75
schellenbergk's review against another edition
A great poet died this month. This is her last book, and it's a fine one. There are several recurring themes.. Dialogues with entities not human (with aliens explain what life is like "Here" on Earth, with her teenage self, with an idea for a poem, with a poet dead for centuries. Other poems deal with tragic events.. Accidents, a divorce, an apocalyptic event. But the best poem is the last.. She exits literature with a poem about poetry. Simply wonderful.
lauren_endnotes's review against another edition
4.0
"And I know what else you’re thinking.
Wars, wars, wars.
But even between them there happen to be breaks.
Attention—people are evil.
At ease—people are good.
At attention we produce wastelands.
At ease by the sweat of our brows we build houses
and quickly live in them."
From 'Here', the title poem of the collection HERE by Wisława Szymborska, translated from the Polish by Clare Cavanagh and Stanislaw Baranczak.
My second Szymborska poetry collection, and it solidifies her place as one of my must-read poets. This volume, much smaller than my read of MAP last year, but equally impressive.
Her poetry is simple - observational, that kind that elicits a wry smirk rather than a full laugh or a whimper. She's clever. She imagines her parents meeting other people and the children they would have had, perhaps even playing together at recess. She describes the centuries of wear in a Greek statue, only the torso remains.
Other highlights in the collection:
Identification
Absence
Greek Statue
Divorce
Wars, wars, wars.
But even between them there happen to be breaks.
Attention—people are evil.
At ease—people are good.
At attention we produce wastelands.
At ease by the sweat of our brows we build houses
and quickly live in them."
From 'Here', the title poem of the collection HERE by Wisława Szymborska, translated from the Polish by Clare Cavanagh and Stanislaw Baranczak.
My second Szymborska poetry collection, and it solidifies her place as one of my must-read poets. This volume, much smaller than my read of MAP last year, but equally impressive.
Her poetry is simple - observational, that kind that elicits a wry smirk rather than a full laugh or a whimper. She's clever. She imagines her parents meeting other people and the children they would have had, perhaps even playing together at recess. She describes the centuries of wear in a Greek statue, only the torso remains.
Other highlights in the collection:
Identification
Absence
Greek Statue
Divorce
innashtakser's review against another edition
5.0
Another wonderful book of pems by Szymborska. Harsh, wise, and full of sympathy for us, humans.
aleckxsandra's review against another edition
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
zoes_human's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
4.0
A remarkable bilingual volume of poetry touching on the ordinary in an extraordinary way.
kate_in_a_book's review against another edition
4.0
Poems in original Polish and in translation from the winner of the 1996 Nobel Prize for Literature. Intriguing abstract meditations on daily life.
cintiareyes's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
Wislawa Szymborska's poetry is beautifully simple, in the sense that the language and topics are universal. I've been trying to place my poetry reading according to how hard I consider it, so I can recommend it to beginners, and Wislawa is in a beautiful middle, I'd dare to say leaning towards the accessible side of the spectrum. There is at least one poem that just by the way it sounds you may like it.