There are few things I love more than translating Russian poetry, and this book, a gift from my dear friend Ben, aided in many nights of expanding my Russian vocabulary. ( )

My previous review at Amazon:

Trembling, you hug your weapon tight. /
Hunter, he is your unarmed double. /
You are his doomed and wingless double. /

from "Mating Flight of the Woodcock" page 9, translated by Stanley Kunitz with Anthony Kahn

This volume introduces English-speaking readers to Yevtushenko's work. It originated when Yevtushenko asked eight English-speaking poets he respected to translate his work. Since so many people contributed to the book, sometimes the style seems uneven, which is disappointing if one reads strictly as one would anyone else's book of poetry. If one remembers that it is in translation, however, one can sympathize with the difficulty of working with another language. Not knowing Russian, I cannot say whose translations are closest, but for those who do know Russian, the last third of the book reprints the poems in the original. This extends the book for those who would like deeper study or discussion.

I. Pitching and Rolling
II. Doing the Twist on Nails
III. The Torments of Conscience
IV. Procession with the Madonna
V. Cemetery of Whales

Contributors: James Dickey, Geoffrey Dutton, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Anthony Kahn, Edward Keenan, Stanley Kunitz, Igor Mezhakoff-Koriakin, George Reavey, Albert C. Todd, John Updike, Richard Wilbur

328 pages ( )