Items related to A Smell Of Fish
The poems in A Smell of Fish connect and radiate like the spokes of a wheel: haiku, sestinas, poems beginning with a line by somebody else or sparked off by foreign travel, a version of Dante, a sea sequence set on the Suffolk coast, and - long overdue - Matthew Sweeney's own version of the old Irish poem where his namesake is turned into a bird.
In this, his seventh collection, we are back in a world where all explanations are withheld. 'If Beckett and Kafka come to mind', as Sean O'Brien wrote in his essay on Sweeney in The Deregulated Muse, 'they are not simply influences but kindred imaginations'. So we encounter a valley mysteriously filling with the smell of fish, second-world-war planes reappearing over London, a secret attic mural of a naked ex-lover, a cosmonaut abandoned on the moon, and a subterranean tunnel that runs the length of Ireland.
Whatever the subject, we are in the confident hands of one of the most imaginatively gifted poets now writing.
In this, his seventh collection, we are back in a world where all explanations are withheld. 'If Beckett and Kafka come to mind', as Sean O'Brien wrote in his essay on Sweeney in The Deregulated Muse, 'they are not simply influences but kindred imaginations'. So we encounter a valley mysteriously filling with the smell of fish, second-world-war planes reappearing over London, a secret attic mural of a naked ex-lover, a cosmonaut abandoned on the moon, and a subterranean tunnel that runs the length of Ireland.
Whatever the subject, we are in the confident hands of one of the most imaginatively gifted poets now writing.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Product Description:
Paperback. Pages: 64 Publisher: Random House UK Using a wide variety of styles and tones. The strands of poems in A SMELL OF FISH radiate like the spores of a wheel: haiku. Sestinas. Poems about foreign travel. Verses beginning with a line by someone else. a sea sequence set in Alderburgh and - long overdue - Matthew Sweeney's own version of the Old Irish poem 'Sweeney'. In this. his seventh collection. we are back in a world of myserious clarity. of an alternative realism that is a playful as it is unsettling: we are shown a blue dyed chihuahua. a recipe for roadkill. second-world-war fighter planes appearing over London. a fatally constipated bull elephant. and a subterranean tunnel that runs the length of Ireland. Whatever the subject - we are in the confident hands of one of the most imaginatively gifted poets now writing. 'Sweeney's poems are reflective. funny. supremel...
Review:
A Smell of Fish is Irish-born, London-berthed Sweeney's seventh volume of poetry and his 14th book in total. As such, the sense of a writer hitting a mid-season peak, fully in control of his talents and powers, is palpable. And the range of styles is impressive, too: by turns sombre, funny, detached, passionate, Sweeney is keen to play every octave on poetry's piano--and to experiment with voices not entirely his own.
Sometimes, like in the city man's dream of freedom that is the Appointment, his whimsical nature imagery is reminiscent of W.B. Yeats; "so he jumped in and swam / and a red-tailed hawk / led him to the island / where among the silverbirch / he found a lantern". In other poems, like the wittily acerbic Roadkill, he sounds like Ted Hughes in a bit of a bad mood: "Scrape the cat off the road / take it home and fillet out the flesh / throw it in the marinade".
The more experimental poems are always intriguing, if not always entirely successful. In the middle of the collection is a series of haikus, the best of which, like Hangover ("Look a drunk lying / in a canoe / being walked on / by a pair of skunks"), are oddly but tellingly comic. Immediately after them comes a chunk of very freely translated Dante: "what's your name?" / Fame is the last thing I want / Fuck off and don't annoy me further".
A Smell of Fish ends with a suite of related poems, themed around the bleak surreal beauty of the English littoral at Thorpeness. These are the best poems in the book: sardonic, lyrical, strongly imagined. For Sweeney, Thorpeness is a place where waves "are apologetic on the shingle/after the excesses of the previous night", where the "white dome of Sizewell / is the bald head of a killer". Taken together the Thorpeness verses form a vivid and resonant conclusion to a coveted collection. --Sean Thomas
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherJonathan Cape
- Publication date2000
- ISBN 10 0224060678
- ISBN 13 9780224060677
- BindingPaperback
- Edition number1
- Number of pages80
- Rating
Buy New
Learn more about this copy
£ 8
Shipping:
£ 4.50
From United Kingdom to U.S.A.
Top Search Results from the AbeBooks Marketplace
Stock Image
A Smell of Fish
Published by
Vintage Publishing 2000-03-02, London
(2000)
ISBN 10: 0224060678
ISBN 13: 9780224060677
New
paperback
Quantity: 5
Seller:
Rating
Book Description paperback. Condition: New. Language: ENG. Seller Inventory # 9780224060677
Buy New
£ 8
Convert currency
Stock Image
A Smell Of Fish (Paperback)
Published by
Vintage Publishing, London
(2000)
ISBN 10: 0224060678
ISBN 13: 9780224060677
New
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. The new book from the popular Irish poet, shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Poetry.The poems in A Smell of Fish connect and radiate like the spokes of a wheel- haiku, sestinas, poems beginning with a line by somebody else or sparked off by foreign travel, a version of Dante, a sea sequence set on the Suffolk coast, and - long overdue - Matthew Sweeney's own version of the old Irish poem where his namesake is turned into a bird.In this, his seventh collection, we are back in a world where all explanations are withheld. 'If Beckett and Kafka come to mind', as Sean O'Brien wrote in his essay on Sweeney in The Deregulated Muse, 'they are not simply influences but kindred imaginations'. So we encounter a valley mysteriously filling with the smell of fish, second-world-war planes reappearing over London, a secret attic mural of a naked ex-lover, a cosmonaut abandoned on the moon, and a subterranean tunnel that runs the length of Ireland.Whatever the subject, we are in the confident hands of one of the most imaginatively gifted poets now writing. Includes poems that connect and radiate like the spokes of a wheel: haiku, sestinas, poems beginning with a line by somebody else or sparked off by foreign travel, a version of Dante, a sea sequence set on the Suffolk coast, and - long overdue - the author's own version of the old Irish poem where his namesake is turned into a bird. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780224060677
Buy New
£ 12.56
Convert currency
Stock Image
A Smell of Fish (Cape poetry) Paperback
Published by
Jonathan Cape
(2000)
ISBN 10: 0224060678
ISBN 13: 9780224060677
New
Soft Cover
Quantity: 3
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Soft Cover. Condition: new. Seller Inventory # 9780224060677
Buy New
£ 12.73
Convert currency
Stock Image
A Smell of Fish (Cape poetry)
Published by
Jonathan Cape
(2000)
ISBN 10: 0224060678
ISBN 13: 9780224060677
New
Paperback
Quantity: 2
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Brand New. 80 pages. 7.60x5.20x0.55 inches. In Stock. Seller Inventory # __0224060678
Buy New
£ 7.16
Convert currency
Stock Image
A Smell of Fish
Published by
Fisicalbook
(2000)
ISBN 10: 0224060678
ISBN 13: 9780224060677
New
Softcover
Quantity: 12
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: New. In. Seller Inventory # ria9780224060677_new
Buy New
£ 7.67
Convert currency
Stock Image
A Smell of Fish
Published by
Jonathan Cape
(2000)
ISBN 10: 0224060678
ISBN 13: 9780224060677
New
Softcover
Quantity: 12
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: New. Includes poems that connect and radiate like the spokes of a wheel: haiku, sestinas, poems beginning with a line by somebody else or sparked off by foreign travel, a version of Dante, a sea sequence set on the Suffolk coast, and - long overdue - the author's own version of the old Irish poem where his namesake is turned into a bird. Num Pages: 80 pages. BIC Classification: DCF. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 193 x 132 x 14. Weight in Grams: 122. . 2000. First Edition. Paperback. . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland. Seller Inventory # V9780224060677
Buy New
£ 14.82
Convert currency
Stock Image
A Smell of Fish
Published by
Jonathan Cape
(2000)
ISBN 10: 0224060678
ISBN 13: 9780224060677
New
Softcover
First Edition
Quantity: 12
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Condition: New. Includes poems that connect and radiate like the spokes of a wheel: haiku, sestinas, poems beginning with a line by somebody else or sparked off by foreign travel, a version of Dante, a sea sequence set on the Suffolk coast, and - long overdue - the author's own version of the old Irish poem where his namesake is turned into a bird. Num Pages: 80 pages. BIC Classification: DCF. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 193 x 132 x 14. Weight in Grams: 122. . 2000. First Edition. Paperback. . . . . Seller Inventory # V9780224060677
Buy New
£ 17.39
Convert currency
Stock Image
A Smell Of Fish (Paperback)
Published by
Vintage Publishing, London
(2000)
ISBN 10: 0224060678
ISBN 13: 9780224060677
New
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. The new book from the popular Irish poet, shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Poetry.The poems in A Smell of Fish connect and radiate like the spokes of a wheel- haiku, sestinas, poems beginning with a line by somebody else or sparked off by foreign travel, a version of Dante, a sea sequence set on the Suffolk coast, and - long overdue - Matthew Sweeney's own version of the old Irish poem where his namesake is turned into a bird.In this, his seventh collection, we are back in a world where all explanations are withheld. 'If Beckett and Kafka come to mind', as Sean O'Brien wrote in his essay on Sweeney in The Deregulated Muse, 'they are not simply influences but kindred imaginations'. So we encounter a valley mysteriously filling with the smell of fish, second-world-war planes reappearing over London, a secret attic mural of a naked ex-lover, a cosmonaut abandoned on the moon, and a subterranean tunnel that runs the length of Ireland.Whatever the subject, we are in the confident hands of one of the most imaginatively gifted poets now writing. Includes poems that connect and radiate like the spokes of a wheel: haiku, sestinas, poems beginning with a line by somebody else or sparked off by foreign travel, a version of Dante, a sea sequence set on the Suffolk coast, and - long overdue - the author's own version of the old Irish poem where his namesake is turned into a bird. Shipping may be from our Sydney, NSW warehouse or from our UK or US warehouse, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780224060677
Buy New
£ 16.91
Convert currency
Stock Image
A Smell Of Fish (Paperback)
Published by
Vintage Publishing, London
(2000)
ISBN 10: 0224060678
ISBN 13: 9780224060677
New
Paperback
Quantity: 1
Seller:
Rating
Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. The new book from the popular Irish poet, shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Poetry.The poems in A Smell of Fish connect and radiate like the spokes of a wheel- haiku, sestinas, poems beginning with a line by somebody else or sparked off by foreign travel, a version of Dante, a sea sequence set on the Suffolk coast, and - long overdue - Matthew Sweeney's own version of the old Irish poem where his namesake is turned into a bird.In this, his seventh collection, we are back in a world where all explanations are withheld. 'If Beckett and Kafka come to mind', as Sean O'Brien wrote in his essay on Sweeney in The Deregulated Muse, 'they are not simply influences but kindred imaginations'. So we encounter a valley mysteriously filling with the smell of fish, second-world-war planes reappearing over London, a secret attic mural of a naked ex-lover, a cosmonaut abandoned on the moon, and a subterranean tunnel that runs the length of Ireland.Whatever the subject, we are in the confident hands of one of the most imaginatively gifted poets now writing. Includes poems that connect and radiate like the spokes of a wheel: haiku, sestinas, poems beginning with a line by somebody else or sparked off by foreign travel, a version of Dante, a sea sequence set on the Suffolk coast, and - long overdue - the author's own version of the old Irish poem where his namesake is turned into a bird. Shipping may be from our UK warehouse or from our Australian or US warehouses, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780224060677
Buy New
£ 13.49
Convert currency