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Rating: 
Summary: A rare sincerity to give it the stature of a model
Review: Some people attain a height by sheer merit. But that even love's labour can help one claim a position of true significance has amply been demonstrated by what happened to this book! Seely's book is now known to almost all Jibanananda admirers a large number of whom are, to tell you the truth, not very enthusiastic about English texts. The book can act like a model as to how one should start a literary acquaintance from the scratches. It has succeeded in presenting an able perspective to Jibanananda's work in terms of a geographic, ecological, political, mythological background. The use of the folk lores, seasonal motiffs, motiffs to transcend the cultural unfamiliarities have been remarkably identified and presented. In my opinion, the translations (for most of the oft-heard poems of the poet) are quite of satisfactory standard. Bengalis lamented among themselves the relative obscurity their achievements have often been destined to and this book gave them some satisfaction and slight expectation that Jibabanananda will be appreciated by international readers if not as much as he deserved to be. The hard work that has gone into its writing and the heart-work that it has possibly achieved will reward Seely with a name not unknown to the readers of Bengali poetry. It is pity that a person of his reputation has to oblige funding authorities for the chair at Chicago University, at present being graced by him.
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Summary: Jibanananda Das - The Poet of the Invisible
Review: "A Poet Apart" is a scholarly written book by Clinton B. Seely on Jibanananda Das, the most influential poet of Bengal after Rabindranath Tagore. Poet Jibanananda, in the book by Prof. Seely, is manifested uniquely in an historical time. Prof. Seely has rightly brought forth geography, politics, myth, metaphysics, literature etc. of Bengal, in the historical sense, as the basis for the formation of the essential matrix in which the poetry of Jibanananda formed, evolved, and completed its transmutation from the visible to the invisible. Prof. Seely has done a superb literary work in bringing the life and poetry of Jibanananda Das to the English speaking readers, writers, and scholars.
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Summary: Jibanananda Das - The Poet of the Invisible
Review: "A Poet Apart" by Professor Seely is an amazing work where research scholarship, intelligence, multicultural insights gained only from experience, and poetic creativity have wonderfully blended in.Professor Seely has lived in Bangladesh (particularly in Barisal, where Jibanananda was born and raised), deeply entrenched himself in a mix of the local people, their language, culture, natural surroundings (important to understand the Dhansiri, Hijal, Kirtankhola references), ethnicity, and socio-political tradition, studied the poet's work thoroughly, and produced a phenomenal work on the poet in this book. The translations of Jibanananda's uniquely Bengali coinages are simply astounding. I literally felt the same milieu and complexities of the poet through the translations. But a translation of Jibanananda's work is not the only gift you receive from this book - it is the hermeneutic effort that goes into 'fusion of cultural horizons", beyond objectivity and relativity, that astounds the reader. Early on in the book, Seely goes into a chapter of Bengal's history, geography, people, and cultural archetype which is so carefully, respectfully, and accurately knit that it instantly establishes credibility. The rest is for the reader to read and enjoy. I insist that you read this book.
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Summary: Of course I haven't actually read it yet but...
Review: ...why should that stop me? After all, only one of the other five reviewers has! I've awarded it five stars for two reasons: (1) Any book whose mere existence could prompt a loony [who, it has to be said, shows little sign of actually having read it] to write three barely comprehensible "green ink" denunciations just has to be good. (2) JD was a relative of mine. If I defend his honour then maybe some decades after my death a crow will make a majestic, deliberate swoop over the reincarnation of Mr Green Ink in defence of *my* honour and/or my poetry... Now just a minute, people, hold on. Before you hit that "no this review was unhelpful" button, please remember to do the same for the loony - OK, the *other* loony. In triplicate. ;) Come on, Amazon.com, time to start deleting reviews that aren't reviews...
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Summary: Pre BJP Literary Hindu Nationalism
Review: The reviewer from Dallas, Texas, likes this work by Clinton Seely because he sees his Bengali-Hindu-Self-image reflected back at him by his Anglo American Master at the University of Chicago. Such Bengali-Hindu literary taste only reminds the people of Babington Macaulay's Intellectual-Poison-Tree carried along by the Bengali Hindus all the way from Calcutta, India to Dallas, Texas. To such Bengali Hindus obsessed by Cultural Nationalism, I recommend David Ludden's Masterpiece : "Making India Hindu".
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