The Selected Poems of Robert Desnos (Modern European Poetry Series)

Rating:
Summary: Valuable
Review: A great collection of translations from one of the best surrealist poets. A well presented book with a intriguing introduction.

Rating:
Summary: completely, utterly, distractingly fascinating
Review: Perhaps the most underrated, overlooked poet ever, Desnos' work is not only superior to the Frost/Coleridge/etc. you read in high school, but is also infinitely greater than that of Breton and the other surrealists, establishing the modern paradigm of poetic imagination. No other poet really comes close, except for the great Jeremy Reed (try Red-Haired Android to see what I mean). Warm, humane, and oh-so-brilliant, Desnos' poetry is absolutely, endlessly, mind-alteringly fascinating. Kudos to Carolyn Forche and William Kulik for bringing his work in such a fully-realized form to this side of the Atlantic.