Matthew Sweeney Livres

„Als ich die Strickleiter hinaufstieg im Dunkeln, / wußte ich nicht, wohin die Reise ging, / nur eben dies: hinauf.“ Wer sich Matthew Sweeneys Gedichten anvertraut, kann nie wissen, wo er landet, in Grönland oder im Inneren eines gigantischen Rotkohls, und ob nicht gleich ein singendes Pferd oder eine gläserne Nixe um die Ecke biegt. Wohin auch immer die Strickleiter führt, Sprosse für Sprosse, Vers für Vers sind Sweeneys Gedichte von anschaulicher Handfestigkeit und sprachlicher Präzision, die noch das Unwahrscheinlichste selbstverständlich erscheinen lassen. In diesem Auswahlband zeigt Sweeney sich erneut als Lyriker von abgründigem Witz und zarter Melancholie, grandios ins Deutsche übertragen von Jan Wagner.

The poems in A Smell of Fish connect and radiate like the spokes of a 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.

The collection showcases the unique blend of wit and unsettling themes characteristic of Matthew Sweeney's poetry. Readers can expect a journey through familiar yet disorienting landscapes, where intimate conversations seamlessly transition into eerie narratives. The poems oscillate between the mundane and the surreal, creating an atmosphere of both comfort and unease. This North American debut highlights Sweeney's imaginative prowess, inviting both new and returning readers to explore his captivating and unpredictable poetic world.

This collection showcases a variety of Irish poetry, featuring classics like "Cockles and Mussels," works by renowned poets such as Seamus Heaney and W B Yeats, along with lesser-known treasures discovered throughout Ireland's poetic heritage.

These classic Kerouac meditations, zen koans, and prose poems express the poet's beatific quest for peace and joy through oneness with the...

Matthew Sweeney, a poet from Donegal, has a diverse literary portfolio that includes children's fiction and the editing of notable anthologies like Beyond Bedlam and Emergency Kit. His work has been recognized through publications such as Selected Poems and Sanctuary, showcasing his poetic talent. Sweeney's contributions to literature extend beyond poetry, reflecting his versatility and commitment to various genres.

Matthew Sweeney was born in Donegal, Ireland in 1952. He moved to London in 1973 and studied at the Polytechnic of North London and the University of Freiburg. His poetry collections include A Dream of Maps (1981), A Round House (1983), Blue Shoes (1989), Cacti (1992), The Bridal Suite (1997) and A Smell of Fish (2000). Selected Poems, representing the best of 10 books and 20 years' work, was published in 2002. He won a Cholmondeley Award in 1987 and an Arts Council Writers' Award in 1999. He has also published poetry for children, collections including The Flying Spring Onion (1992), Fatso in the Red Suit (1995) and Up on the New and Selected Poems (2001). His novels for children include The Snow Vulture (1992) and a new book, Fox (2002). Matthew Sweeney has held residencies at the University of East Anglia and the South Bank Centre in London, and was Poet in Residence at the National Library for the Blind as part of the 'Poetry Places' scheme run by the Poetry Society in London.

Inspired by Baudelaire's prose poems, Matthew Sweeney crafts 50 evocative pieces that serve as an autobiographical snapshot of his life in Paris. By closely modeling his work on Baudelaire's style, Sweeney captures the essence of his experiences, blending personal reflection with the rich atmosphere of the city.

Matthew Sweeney's final collection brings together poems written during a year of debilitating illness before his death from Motor Neuron Disease in 2018. All his verve and spiky humour are here, following, as always, unnerving dream logic. But the dream is now a nightmare and the catastrophe, impending in all his earlier poems, has come to pass.