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Electric Light
A powerful new collection by the bestselling translator of "Beowulf."
"In the finland of perch, the fenland of alder, on air"
"That is water, on carpets of Bann stream, on hold"
"In the everything flows and steady go of the world."
--from "Perch"
Seamus Heaney's new collection travels widely in time and space, visiting the si...more
"In the finland of perch, the fenland of alder, on air"
"That is water, on carpets of Bann stream, on hold"
"In the everything flows and steady go of the world."
--from "Perch"
Seamus Heaney's new collection travels widely in time and space, visiting the si...more
Hardcover
Published
by Farrar Straus Giroux
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After last year’s bestselling success of Beowulf: A New Verse Translation, renowned author Seamus Heaney now brings us his latest collection of poetry, entitled Electric Light. The collection is split into two sections: a) sweeping poetry, starting off in Heaney’s homeland of Ireland, and then traveling all over the world, from Belgrade to Greece, and b) moving poetry dedicated to those who have passed away like Ted Hughes and Joseph Brodsky. Offering fresh language, as well as plenty of his o...more
I'm philosophically interested in this book, and poetically I guess. I feel like I need to read it again, and then read all of Heaney's other poetry before I can say to much about it. I love the poem "Lupins"; and I'm partial to another poem in here about playing soccer, which is a loose analogy for writing poetry - what else. I've been interested in the way that the task of writing poetry, and thinking about writing poetry has taken over the writing of poetry. Most contemporary po...more
The simple story is this wasn't really for me. Maybe a different Heaney work?
Why is that? I don't really have the language for an answer at this point. But I'll jot a few things down. Now these things should not influence anyone else as they may not apply to you. And they may in the future change for me.
Too many words I had no idea how to pronounce, and often what they meant. Gaelic, primarily.
Too many allusions and other references to Shakespeare and other bi...more
Why is that? I don't really have the language for an answer at this point. But I'll jot a few things down. Now these things should not influence anyone else as they may not apply to you. And they may in the future change for me.
Too many words I had no idea how to pronounce, and often what they meant. Gaelic, primarily.
Too many allusions and other references to Shakespeare and other bi...more
We went to a Stonehill College program to hear Seamus Heaney read and talk about his poetry. Inspirational and amazing.
Although full of great words and earthy imagery, didn't resonate with me as much as his other books. Guess I prefer his grounded work; many of these poems are built from classical (Greek and Latin) forms and content—or are reminiscences of moments with friends that stay too private, don't reach enough towards the universal to be accessible. I do love his use of compound nouns. And his work on Beowulf shows up in a few poems, both as content and in form. Glad I read it in the bookstore instead of...more
A great collection for those who love Heaney. I keep comming back and finding gems.
the Kastalian Spring poem is especially dear
I love his simplest, sparest poems best ("Perch"), though I also delight in his complex love of language, even when he sends me off to look up words like "boreen." (Wait, what does that mean again?)
Oh, Seamus. What can I say? He chronicles "the must and drift of talk".
a fair try by heaney, not his best but it does pass the time...
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Seamus Justin Heaney is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer from County Derry, Ireland. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1995, "for works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which exalt everyday miracles and the living past." He currently lives in Dublin.
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