150 Poems from Poland

150 Poems from Poland is a unique experience in reading. Neither editor nor translator determined the contents and shape of this anthology of contemporary Polish literature, but the poets themselves, who chose their own ’calling cards’ to present to the English reader. In this way, a poetic statement was created that, in the words of the translator, ’is about as close as one can get to something straight from the horse’s mouth’. What is more, each poet was invited to write an ars poetica, describing his or her own approach to the craft of poetry, why it was that he or she decided to become a poet, and what poet or poets influenced them in their genesis and development in the craft.

The poets included represent a wide swath of contemporary styles and backgrounds, from Eligiusz Dymowski, a Franciscan friar, through Andrzej Kotański and Michal Zablocki, who have won success in popular music and cabarets. The playfully metaphysical Wojciech Kass is generously represented, as are the classically-inspired poets Artur Grabowski, Krzysztof Koehler and C.S. Kraszewski (also the translator of the volume), who inject a Baroque sensibility into twenty-first century poetry. Teresa Tomsia finds a stunning spirituality in the simplest of things, and the reflections of nature - and not only nature - found in the verses of Adriana Szymańska and Jakub Pacześniak stun the reader with a depth of expression, whether in the Herbertian diction of the former, or the sparser style of the latter, which strongly evokes the best writing of the Imagists and W.C. Williams.

Readers interested in Poland, the Catholic tradition of letters, and good writing in general are sure to fall hard for 150 Poems from Poland. What is more - due to the organic way in which the anthology came about - you get more bang for your buck: there’s quite a few more than 150 poems in the book. But to find out why, you’ll have to dip into the introduction...