A POETRY BOOK THAT GAVE A NEW EXPERIENCE

 

POETRY is always an interesting option to simply make a quick read and the one we can turn to when we are in dire need of a feed for the mind.

Poetry often sticks with us, making us to re-read and even memorize the words. Poetic words tend to be easier to memorize than non-poetic ones, and it can help improve a person's memory and make it more receptive to remembering other information as well.

  It is so because Poetry is connected to aesthetics, or anything that is beautiful in the world. It can also help increase cultural awareness, as the poetry of a culture offers insight into that culture's history and values. Poetry can also help writers express their emotions and can in turn help readers connect to those emotions.

 With the same flow my eyes caught the attention of the poetry book SELECTED POEMS BY PABLO NERUDA in the library and without making any further delay I took the book.

 The book is a paperback published by Penguin UK with a total 487 pages.

 

OCEAN

 

Body more immaculate than a wave,

Salt washing away its own line,

And the brilliant bird

Dying without ground roots

 

This is one of the short and sweet poem from the book.

 

The book is distinctly remarkable in its content as it carries both the original Spanish version of the poem alongside the translated one in English. There are nearly 117 poems on diverse topics.  Wine, Gold, ode to the book, fable of the Mermaid and the Drunks, The portrait in the rock, The Lion, The long day called Thursday, The water song ends were the few among the gems that this treasure holds in itself.

 The repute of the poet is well known to all and he needs no bigger introduction. This Chilean poet’s poems about love were expressed through metaphors and images of nature. He was accomplished in   a variety of styles in his poetry, ranging from erotically charged love poems to surrealist poems, historical epics, and overtly political manifestos.

 Literary critics state that Pablo has made sure that the polychromatic and vibrant mix of stylistic elements and literary devices such as personification, symbolism, imagery, repetition, etc., that he incorporates every time keeps the reader zealous.

 The book was well received among readers of poetry and here I quote a review of the book:

“Selected Poems contains Neruda’s resonant, exploratory, intensely individualistic verse, rooted in the physical landscape and people of Chile. Here we find sensuous songs of love, tender odes to the sea, melancholy lyrics of heartache, fiery political statements and a frank celebration of sex. This is an enticing, distinctive and celebrated collection of poetry from the greatest 20^th century Latin American poet.”

Reading this book bestowed me a new experience to view the finer perspective of an all-time great poet and the secret of poetry’s tight hold on the readers.

(This blogpost is a part of BLOGCHATTER's #TBR2024 for the month of March)