May Day

May DayPoland in France with the sound of a centaur going into waterTo thou your misfortunein the collective amnesia of dates, of Nocturnesof Shakos, of blackened fragments of icons… More

Paulo Henriques Britto: Lullaby

LullabyNight after night, exhausted,digesting the day, past wordsand this side of sleep, we lie simplified,stripped of past lives and projects,weary of voices and verticals,relieved to be only bodies side… More

Recumbents

Cardiogram (May)The Seine was green by your armFurther than the Mirabeau bridge beneaththe hills like a breathingThe suburbs praised usI would have wanted I would haveso needed you to… More

Trompe l’oeil

Trompe l'oeilAll the failures of an existence,when meticulously compiled,and given a certain coherence,resemble a sort of pyramid—monumental—though truncated,maybe—when seen from a distanceat the precise moment the fadingsun reaches it,… More

Poems (1945-1971)

The CanaryThey stood him where the harshest wind blowsthey promised him to the froststhey gave him a black dressand a red tiea nail-punctured sun that drippedblack glassesblood… More

The Gifts

Today I put on / a hot red blood / today people love me / a woman smiled at me / a girl gave me a shell / a… More

Miltos Sachtouris: The Soldier

The SoldierI have written no poemsin thudsin thudsmy life rolledOne day I trembledthe next day I shudderedin fearin fearmy life passedI have written no poemsI have written no poemsI… More

The New Boy (from Landnahme)

It was the middle of September—the new school year had just begun—when Miss Nitzschke brought a new boy to our third-period class. Miss Nitzschke was our class advisor; she… More

Gregory Rabassa

As one who works at spreading an awareness of what people are writing and saying in other languages through translation, I have long celebrated the labors of PEN American… More