Review of "Sunflower Splendor" ed. by Liu Wuqi & Yucheng Lo

There are innumerable collections of Chinese poetry.  Some are collected by poet, e.g. Li Bai, Du Fu, Su Shi, Tao Yuanming, and the other greats.  There are some by dynasty, the Tang and the Song generally considered the best, though the Yuan and Ming also make a good showing.  And there are collections by theme, hermitry, friendship, transcendence, Daoism, etc.  Sunflower Splendor has a lot of all, making the anthology amongst the best yet published, and will be of particular interest to people who have read a fair amount of Chinese poetry already and are looking for atypical material from the Middle Kingdom.

Sunflower Splendor undoubtedly the work of many years, editors Liu Wuqi and Irving Yucheng Lo and the book’s roughly fifty contributors have collected among the best of what Chinese poetry has to offer.  From the early dynasties to the latter, the themes of water to parting, to a huge variety of poets, well-known to obscure, every facet of Chinese poetry seems packed in this collection.  But at 681 pages, it should come as no surprise.

Review of "Collected Poems of Henry Thoreau" Edited Carl Bode

Henry David Thoreau is a name known to many.  But with good reason, it’s not for his poetry.  A far better prose stylist than poet, Thoreau nevertheless dabbled in the medium many times in his life, scattering verse here and there throughout his extensive journals and notebooks.  Collected for the first and only time, Collected Poems of Henry  Thoreau is the more abstract side of the renowned philosopher and naturalist.

As one would expect, nature, transcendence, and personal reflection take center stage in Thoreau’s poetry.  Though seeming he would be a better writer of free verse, Thoreau nevertheless limits himself to rhyme and meter, form exhibited in all of Bode’s selections.  Thus, the same painstaking care with which Thoreau went about writing prose is evident in his verse.  Words and phrases are carefully selected, but unfortunately most often to meet the demands of closed verse rather than expression.  Several selections stand out, but overall the collection is a bit tedious; there is a reason Thoreau is known for his prose.

In the end, Collected Poems of Henry Thoreau is recommended only for completists, scholars, or enthusiasts of the natural philosopher.  Nothing spectacular about the collection, the selections merely support his prose work rather than inform it.  Moments of beauty do exist, but by in large expectations for the work to be as profound or touching as Walden, The Maine Woods, etc. should be kept to a minimum.

Review of "The Gay Genius: The Life and Times of Su Tungpo" by Lin Yutang

Lin Yutang was not to know the adjective he chose to describe the most brilliant Chinese poet of the Song Dynasty would evolve in the latter half of the 20th century to have a meaning he did not intend.  It detracts in no way from the biography, however, Lin combining beautifully the poetry and life of Su Tungpo, considered by most one of the greatest poets of not only Chinese, but world history.  The word chosen due to the hardships he endured with a smile throughout his life, Su proves that neither poetry or politics turn out as you’d like them when intelligence and integrity guide your actions.

Though born and raised in the rural west of China in 1037, Su Tungpo, or as he is more commonly referred to, Su Shi, would go on to live an extraordinary life in seemingly every province and major city in China.  Poet, counselor, governor, philosopher, outcast, even gardener and Daoist quester for immortality, his ideas may seem more scattered than they truly are.  Given the quality of his writing, the enduring strength of his wisdom, and his willingness to stand up for his beliefs, when one looks deeper they find the titles appropriately given, nothing trite about the poet’s life.  Substance to the form makes for an interesting life, and in the hands of Lin, interesting reading.

One of, if not the foremost, liaison between China and the West, Lin Yutang has a way with the English language 95% of native speakers do not.  The descriptions eloquent, Lin drifts easily along the events, major and minor, of Su Shi’s life, the political context in which he lived, and the prosaic output we still enjoy today.  Though perhaps more exemplary poetry could have been included, one cannot fault Lin as his work was intended to be a biography through and through, the poet’s words translated in innumerable texts elsewhere, including Lin’s own The Importance of Understanding.  An engaging and thorough survey, Lin never falters from the first to the last page, every deed of the major figure in Chinese history presented in appropriate measure.

In the end, The Gay Genius: The Life and Times of Su Tungpo is everything a person could want in a biography.  On top of being a complete account, Lin packs the text with cultural and historical facts to give the reader proper background on a time and country relatively unfamiliar to Western minds.  The only major complaint may be that Lin’s voice is redolent throughout, but given that he is able to express himself humbly and offer a great deal of wisdom and insight into the events of the poet’s life, he can be forgiven by less exacting readers.  Plain and simple, there is no better biography of Su Shi available in English.  If you’re interested in either Chinese poetry or Song Dynasty history, the book is well worth your while.

Review of "Selected Works: Poetry & Prose of Alexander Pushkin"

After reading “The Poor Knight,” Pushkin’s homage to Don Quixote in verse, it was difficult not to pick up the two volume Selected Works: Poetry & Prose of Alexander Pushkin I found in a bargain bin.  The poet’s delicate expression of the familiar coming to full life in this collection, I now count myself a fan and will gladly read anything else I come across. 

That the two volumes are written in a second language, something is undoubtedly lost in translation.  The subtle flavor of vernacular Russian is, unfortunately, a secret held in a box beyond my current skill to unlock.  What remains in English is worthwhile nonetheless, romantic, nationalist, and cultural ideals the major themes.  Despite feeling dated when juxtaposed against today’s poetry featuring minority agendas and random emotional dumps, something remains to be said for the classic style.  In fact, in the face of post-modernism’s poetry-art which is as obscure as Russian Cyrillic to the non-native, the clarity with which Pushkin writes is a breath of fresh air.  The verse metered and rhyming, it's easy to relax reading his observations on nature or laments on declining cultural standards. 

Notable among the poems is “The Prophet,” a short poem on the power of the writer and their word in society.  Likewise, a prose play called  “The Gypsies” captures perfectly the blood and salt lifestyle Westerners stereotypically perceive these wanderer/beggars to live.  Several other prose plays speak to the concerns of Mother Russia in Pushkin’s day - its faults and its glories.  All in all, the collection was a highly suggestive wink that what lays hidden beneath the confounding blanket of Russian is worth further reading.  Accordingly, I have placed Pushkin’s most famous work, Eugene Onegin, on the radar for future purchase – even if in English.