"The Principle of Locality" is a masterful poetry collection by Keith Waldrop, exploring fleeting memories and the passage of time through prose poetry and flowing verses. Set against the backdrop of a garden in London, it reflects on love, life, and the interconnectedness of experiences, inviting readers to discover their own favorite moments within its pages.
"Semiramis, the concluding volume of the Waldrop trilogy, explores the theme of memory through the lens of the ancient heroine Semiramis. Known from various cultural sources, her story is fragmented and elusive. Waldrop reflects on self-portrayal and the masks we wear, emphasizing that true self-understanding remains unattainable, with memories often shaped by absence."
In Alexander Kappes Lyrikdebüt „Nachreden auf Dunkelengel“ begegnen wir dem gefallenen Engel Dunkelengel, der als Zeuge von Katastrophen und menschlichem Ruin agiert. Die Gedichte reflektieren innere und äußere Abgründe und die Suche nach Flucht und Heilung. Kappe vereint verschiedene Erzählstränge und Sprachstile, die das Werk besonders machen.
In "Das Prinzip der Lokalität," Keith Waldrop explores the concept of locality from relativity theory, intertwining prose and poetry to reflect on fleeting memories and their significance. The narrator observes life outside his window, contemplating themes of time, love, and the nature of existence, creating a masterful blend of humor and depth.
Over the years, the author has allowed unspoken judgments to dictate their reading choices. In "Der Umriss der Brücke," Keith Waldrop explores themes of transcendence and boundaries through a blend of prose and poetry. The work reflects on pain, healing, and the cyclical nature of existence, questioning whether true transcendence is achievable amidst life's repetitions.
New Poetry in German
This is the first major anthology of contemporary German-language poetry in English for more than 40 years. As Nicola Thomas says in her Introduction: "English-language readers have relatively few opportunities to encounter contemporary German-language poetry; the simple purpose of this anthology is to offer one such opportunity, in the form of a selection of recent poems translated from the German for an English-language audience. It has been noted that the last twenty or so years have been a moment of great vitality for the German-language lyric, much of the excitement of which has passed English-speaking countries by, for want of translations, and particularly for want of a selection of translated works gathered in one place. It is our hope that the poems presented here speak largely for themselves: that they offer range and variety, something for (almost) everyone, that they make visible some lines of connection in terms of form, style and theme-and, above all, that they show English-speaking readers a glimpse of the vibrancy of the German-language lyric in the first part of the twenty-first century." The selection of poets owes much to the tutelary spirits of three senior figures: Elke Erb, Friedrike Mayroecker, and Thomas Kling, without whom the landscape of current writing in German is unthinkable. Authors featured are Yevgeniy Breyger, Sonja vom Brocke, Alexandru Bulucz, Carolin Callies, Ann Cotten, Ulrike Draesner, Oswald Egger, Elke Erb, Daniel Falb, Christian Filips, Dinçer Güçyeter, Martina Hefter, Jayne-Ann Igel, Hendrik Jackson, Thomas Kling, Dagmara Kraus, Birgit Kreipe, Nadja Küchenmeister, Jan Kuhlbrodt, Georg Less, Friederike Mayroecker, Christoph Meckel, Steffen Popp, Kerstin Preiwuss, Monika Rinck, Ulrike Almut Sandig, Sabine Scho, Daniela Seel, Verena Stauffer, Ulf Stolterfoht, Sebastian Unger, Anja Utler, Peter Waterhouse, and Uljana Wolf. Translators are Shane Anderson, Kurt Beals, Paul-Henri Campbell, Aimee Chor, Brian Currid, Andrew Duncan, Joshua Daniel Edwin, Christopher Fenwick, Gerald Fiebig, Iain Galbraith, Robert Gillett, Nicholas Grindell, Catherine Hales, Christian Hawkey, Jayashree Hari Joshi, Alexander Kappe, Karen Leeder, Grace Nissa, Caroline Reul, Bradley Schmidt, Jake Schneider, Joel Scott, Sophie Seita, Donna Stonecipher, Nicola Thomas, Amy Visram and Jana Maria Weiss.