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Harbour Lights
WINNER OF THE IRISH TIMES POETRY NOW AWARD 2006
‘wonderful flexibility and tonal command, drawing on a range of literary cultures in its commentary on the present and its imagination of the future’.
— Judges’ citation
When one of the finest contemporary poets produces a new collection containing some of his finest work our response is one of exhilaration and gratitude. The long, wide-ranging poems here (‘Resistance Days’, ‘Calypso’, ‘Harbour Lights’ itself) are interspersed with penetrating glances and a series of dazzling translations which enhance and extend their traditions; his version of ‘The Seaside Cemetery’ is a masterpiece. Together they form a book of rare organic unity and distinction. The author’s resolution to study ‘clouds and their formation’ and his concentration on ‘the real thing’ affirm aesthetic values in a violent time. Remembering ‘lives in a former life’ and celebrating ‘the redemptive power of women’, his work is unique in its verve and fluency. Harbour Lights is an act of faith, and a triumph.
‘wonderful flexibility and tonal command, drawing on a range of literary cultures in its commentary on the present and its imagination of the future’.
— Judges’ citation
When one of the finest contemporary poets produces a new collection containing some of his finest work our response is one of exhilaration and gratitude. The long, wide-ranging poems here (‘Resistance Days’, ‘Calypso’, ‘Harbour Lights’ itself) are interspersed with penetrating glances and a series of dazzling translations which enhance and extend their traditions; his version of ‘The Seaside Cemetery’ is a masterpiece. Together they form a book of rare organic unity and distinction. The author’s resolution to study ‘clouds and their formation’ and his concentration on ‘the real thing’ affirm aesthetic values in a violent time. Remembering ‘lives in a former life’ and celebrating ‘the redemptive power of women’, his work is unique in its verve and fluency. Harbour Lights is an act of faith, and a triumph.
- GenresPoetry
80 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2006
About the author
Derek Mahon
86 books25 followersDerek Mahon was born in Belfast in 1941, studied at Trinity College, Dublin, and the Sorbonne, and has held journalistic and academic appointments in London and New York. A member of Aosdána, he has received numerous awards including the Irish Academy of Letters Award, the Scott Moncrieff Translation Prize, and Lannan and Guggenheim Fellowships. - See more at: http://www.gallerypress.com/authors/m...
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 12, 2019
Finished: 12.08.2019
Genre: poetry
Rating: D
#TBR list 2109
Conclusion:
The first poem was wonderful... 'Resistance'.
Here is my review of that poem:
My Thoughts
The rest of the 24 poems....I only liked 3.
I was feeling a bit disappointed
... since I loved the first poem.
I liked 16% of the book.
Not a great score...
Genre: poetry
Rating: D
#TBR list 2109
Conclusion:
The first poem was wonderful... 'Resistance'.
Here is my review of that poem:
My Thoughts
The rest of the 24 poems....I only liked 3.
I was feeling a bit disappointed
... since I loved the first poem.
I liked 16% of the book.
Not a great score...
October 4, 2024
Dreamy, evocative, image-rich poems full of classical allusions with the occasional jolt of truth,
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews