A.M. Klein – författare

The passionately held views of A.M. Klein are focused in these essays on literature and the arts. Ranging from the formally theoretical to the intensely personal, they reflect the enthusiasm and the conviction characteristic of all Klein''s writing.

Among the subjects that come under the critic''s unblinking eye are various genres of Jewish literature, illuminating not only on their own terms but also for what they reveal about Klein''s Jewish poems. There are also essays on Canadian, American, English, and European literature as general subjects, and others on specific works and individual writers, including the acclaimed articles on James Joyce.

Throughout this collection is heard a critical voice sharpened with erudition and enriched with emotion. The essays are framed with an introduction, which presents a thematic analysis, and a biographical chronology, which places the essays in the context of Klein''s life and work as teacher, poet, novelist, and critic.

A.M. Klein''s reputation as a writer on his poetry and to a lesser extent on his remarkable poetic novel The Second Scroll. But he also wrote many short stories over a period of more than a quarter of a century. Until now few people have been aware of their existence; many exist only in manuscript form, and most of those that were published appeared in magazines that were not readily accessible to the general reading public. This volume bring them together.

Klein''s range of themes and styles in his short fiction, as in his poetry and in his journalistic writing, is broad. He draws on his Jewish experience, focusing on legends, festivals, and ceremonies, well-known character types, and familiar aspects of Jewish life – in the synagogue, in the home, and on the streets. Klein was not limited, however, by his Jewish concerns, for he also wrote social and political satire and parodies of the detective story and of literary debates. His pervasive sense of humour is often closely associated with his feeling for the macabre, producing a quality of black comedy that is distinctly Kleinian.

The stories in this volume are an invaluable addition to the canon of Klein''s works and their publication will extend and reinforce his already considerable reputation.

It is for his poetry that A.M. Klein is best known and most warmly remembered. This collection includes all Klein''s poetry, both original works and translations from Hebrew, Yiddish, Aramaic, and Latin. Many of them, coming from all periods of his careers, have never been published.

The poems are arranged chronologically according to date of composition. This makes possible, for the first time, an appreciation of Klein''s poetic development. The editor''s introduction places this development in the perspective of Klein''s life and time, and in particular explores Klein''s lifelong struggle to reconcile his dual vocations as both a Jewish and a modernist writer.

The textual apparatus identifies all authoritative versions for each poem and lists all emendations and all substative variants in both published and mauscript versions. The explanatory notes gloss obscure terms and references. They also provide a rich context for appreciation and interpretation by drawing connections with Klein''s life, his wide reading, and his work as a whole. Wherever possible, Klein''s own numerous, but scattered, comments on his poems have been cited.

The passionately held views of A.M. Klein are focused in these essays on literature and the arts. Ranging from the formally theoretical to the intensely personal, they reflect the enthusiasm and the conviction characteristic of all Klein''s writing.

Among the subjects that come under the critic''s unblinking eye are various genres of Jewish literature, illuminating not only on their own terms but also for what they reveal about Klein''s Jewish poems. There are also essays on Canadian, American, English, and European literature as general subjects, and others on specific works and individual writers, including the acclaimed articles on James Joyce.

Throughout this collection is heard a critical voice sharpened with erudition and enriched with emotion. The essays are framed with an introduction, which presents a thematic analysis, and a biographical chronology, which places the essays in the context of Klein''s life and work as teacher, poet, novelist, and critic.

A.M. Klein''s reputation as a writer on his poetry and to a lesser extent on his remarkable poetic novel The Second Scroll. But he also wrote many short stories over a period of more than a quarter of a century. Until now few people have been aware of their existence; many exist only in manuscript form, and most of those that were published appeared in magazines that were not readily accessible to the general reading public. This volume bring them together.

Klein''s range of themes and styles in his short fiction, as in his poetry and in his journalistic writing, is broad. He draws on his Jewish experience, focusing on legends, festivals, and ceremonies, well-known character types, and familiar aspects of Jewish life – in the synagogue, in the home, and on the streets. Klein was not limited, however, by his Jewish concerns, for he also wrote social and political satire and parodies of the detective story and of literary debates. His pervasive sense of humour is often closely associated with his feeling for the macabre, producing a quality of black comedy that is distinctly Kleinian.

The stories in this volume are an invaluable addition to the canon of Klein''s works and their publication will extend and reinforce his already considerable reputation.