Drawing from every stage of his career, Derek Walcott's Selected Poems brings together famous pieces from his early volumes, including "A Far Cry from Africa" and "A City's Death by Fire," with passages from the celebrated Omeros and selections from his latest major works, which extend his contributions to reenergizing the contemporary long poem. Here we find all of Walcott's essential themes, from grappling with the Caribbean's colonial legacy to his conflicted love of home and of Western literary tradition; from the wisdom-making pain of time and mortality to the strange wonder of love, the natural world, and what it means to be human. We see his lifelong labor at poetic crafts, his broadening of the possibilities of rhyme and meter, stanza forms, language, and metaphor. Edited and with an introduction by the Jamaican poet and critic Edward Baugh, this volume is a perfect representation of Walcott's breadth of work, spanning almost half a century.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Derek Walcott (1930-2017) was born in St. Lucia, the West Indies, in 1930. His Collected Poems: 1948-1984 was published in 1986, and his subsequent works include a book-length poem, Omeros (1990); a collection of verse, The Bounty (1997); and, in an edition illustrated with his own paintings, the long poem Tiepolo's Hound (2000). His numerous plays include The Haitian Trilogy (2001) and Walker and The Ghost Dance (2002). Walcott received the Queen's Medal for Poetry in 1988 and the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1992.
This career-spannning retrospective, culled from nearly 50 years of work, will go a long way toward reminding readers of the breadth and depth of Nobel laureate Walcott's achievement. Though he is perhaps best known for his modern epic, Omeros, which tells a Homeric tale set in St. Lucia, Walcott is a fine lyric poet as well, writing in traditional forms and meters as well as in powerful free verse. Alongside the epic tone that he brought into modern verse—"I sing of Achille, Afolabe's son,/ who never ascended in an elevator"—is lustful writing about a woman humming Bob Marley on a bus, a casual description of being mugged in Greenwich Village or a painter's-eye view of a fish. The political Walcott is also here; observing a crowd listening to a politician, he writes, "Who will name this silence/ respect? Those forced, hoarse hosannas/ awe?" The lyric Walcott is well represented, but the long poems—which are necessarily excerpted—prove more problematic. At best, the editor can hope that readers, hooked by one of these narrative poems, will be compelled to seek out the complete version. Nonetheless, this book represents a milestone in the career of a major writer. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping:
FREE
Within U.S.A.
Shipping:
US$ 4.25
Within U.S.A.
Seller: SecondSale, Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
Condition: USED_GOOD. Item in good condition. Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc. Seller Inventory # 00068966990
Quantity: 3 available
Seller: Your Online Bookstore, Houston, TX, U.S.A.
hardcover. Condition: USED_GOOD. Seller Inventory # 0374260664-3-31850077
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Better World Books: West, Reno, NV, U.S.A.
Condition: USED_VERYGOOD. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in excellent condition. May show signs of wear or have minor defects. Seller Inventory # 4021651-6
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Better World Books, Mishawaka, IN, U.S.A.
Condition: USED_VERYGOOD. Used book that is in excellent condition. May show signs of wear or have minor defects. Seller Inventory # 4811326-6
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: HPB-Emerald, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
hardcover. Condition: USED_VERYGOOD. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!. Seller Inventory # S_404367278
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Textbooks_Source, Columbia, MO, U.S.A.
hardcover. Condition: USED_GOOD. First Edition. Ships in a BOX from Central Missouri! May not include working access code. Will not include dust jacket. Has used sticker(s) and some writing or highlighting. UPS shipping for most packages, (Priority Mail for AK/HI/APO/PO Boxes). Seller Inventory # 000835709U
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: HPB Inc., Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: USED_VERYGOOD. Connecting readers with great books since 1972! Used books may not include companion materials, and may have some shelf wear or limited writing. We ship orders daily and Customer Service is our top priority!. Seller Inventory # S_410868951
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Friends of Pima County Public Library, Tucson, AZ, U.S.A.
Condition: USED_GOOD. Hardcover. NOT Ex-library. Dust jacket in excellent condition. Proceeds benefit the Pima County Public Library system, which serves Tucson and southern Arizona. Until further notice, USPS Priority Mail only reliable option for Hawaii. Enscribed by author. Seller Inventory # 529QWY000CXX
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Books Unplugged, Amherst, NY, U.S.A.
Condition: USED_GOOD. Buy with confidence! Book is in good condition with minor wear to the pages, binding, and minor marks within 0.85. Seller Inventory # bk0374260664xvz189zvxgdd
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: EdmondDantes Bookseller, Minneapolis, MN, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: USED_VERYGOOD. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. NOT X-Library. Stated First edition with number line beginning with 1. Hardcover in Dust Jacket with only minor reading wear; book is clean, unmarked. In stock. Ships from MN, USA. Seller Inventory # 017826
Quantity: 1 available