Whether he draws for inspiration on American blues, Serbian folktales, or Greek myths, Simic''s words have a way of their own. Each of these forty-four poems is a powerful mixture of concrete images. Each records the reality and myth of the world around us-and in us. "Short, perfectly shaped, Simic''s poems float past like feathers, turning one way, then another" (Village Voice).

Whether he draws for inspiration on American blues, Serbian folktales, or Greek myths, Simic''s words have a way of their own. Each of these forty-four poems is a powerful mixture of concrete images. Each records the reality and myth of the world around us-and in us. "Short, perfectly shaped, Simic''s poems float past like feathers, turning one way, then another" (Village Voice).