Return to Calm (English and French Edition) - Hardcover

Jacques Reda

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0924047461 ISBN 13: 9780924047466

Publisher: Host Publications, 2007

Synopsis

Fiction. Translated from the French by Aaron Prevots. RETURN TO CALM, published in French in 1989 and appearing here as a full bilingual edition, immerses the reader in Jacques Reda's lyrical observations of the everyday. Its seven distinct sections offer reflections on youth, on travel in open country, on seasons, on Paris and on remembrance itself. They provide a rhythmic initiation into the outer world's beauty, through the eyes of a writer deeply attuned to the passing of time and space.

About this title

From the Inside Flap

The author of numerous poetry collections, essays and short novels, Jacques Réda has for over forty years been an active presence in French literature. In Return to Calm he is a writer in motion, expansive in his portrayal of days present and past. He holds a mirror up to ordinary events in an effort to reveal their innate poetry, as if to ask, Does the world belong to us or do we instead belong to it? Frequently on the lookout for deepened connections, he realizes they may remain at bay but encourages poems to emit slight signals of hope to us through the interplay of words on the page. Hints of emotion, particularly expressed as admiration for our natural surroundings, further point Réda’s poetry toward the lyrical according to today’s poetic compass.Return to Calm does what it implies it will – soothe, reassure, suggest forgiveness, appease. Whether quietly murmured or marked by a certain playfulness and warmth, it uplifts and entrances, as much through its thoughtful seeking and questioning as through its striking, yet in their images so recognizable, I-wish-I-had-said-that lines.” – from the Introduction by Aaron Prevots

About the Author

Jacques Reda (b. 1929) is the author of more than forty books, including works of poetry, autobiographical prose, short novels, and essays on topics ranging from jazz to city life to literature. A cultural icon and eminent literary figure in mainland Europe, he is the recipient of numerous honors, including the Prix Valery Larbaud (1983), the Grand Prix de l'Academie Francaise (1993) and the Prix Louis Mandin (2005), all three awarded in recognition of his lifetime's achievements. Reda's books available from SPD include EUROPES (Host Publications, 2009) and RETURN TO CALM (Host Publications, 2007).

Edition details

• Publisher: Host Publications
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0924047461
• ISBN 13: 9780924047466
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 227