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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
Magnificent work, magnificent edition, 7 Mar 2002
This is a beautiful edition of Pierre Louÿs's classic work of erotic/romantic poetry. Originally cloaked under the guise of the translation of an actual body of verse written in imitation of the Greek poetess Sappho it became sort of a scandal upon publication for its unabashed celebration of Lesbian love.Translating poetry is always tricky, but I think that Alvah Bessie's has stood the test of time - the freshness, frivolity, tenderness, and romance of the French original has been preserved, and is even enhanced by the brilliant artwork of Willy Pogany. Every poem has a small accompanying illustration, and some have an additional portrait. Now this is not only a beautiful celebration of Lesbian love (though there might be women who disagree, since a man wrote it after all) but it is a beautiful celebration of love in general. It explores love in all its facets. Its teenage infatuation, youthful happy love, distant melancholy on love lost, and the reconciliation with death in the end is mingled with bouts of jealousy, violence, disillusion, and regret. Love poetry doesn't become much more intimate than this. Although the overall content is erotic (as well as the artwork) it never degrades to callous attempts of arousal that we encounter in many works of 'erotica' of the 19th century. It is never disrespectful or vulgar, but sincere, playful, ambiguous, naughty, yet sometimes also mingled with dark moods of oppression. For the artwork no praise can be too high, and since this is a Dover edition (meaning 1st class layout, quality, and price) it is an excellent gift. A truly moving (and haunting!) book that lures you back again and again to repose among faun-haunted groves and the courtesans of the ancient Greek isles.
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(1 customer review)
