Tomaz Salamun – författare

Inspired by Rimbaud and Ashbery, the Slovenian poet Tomaž Šalamun is now inspiring the younger generation of American poets—and Woods and Chalices will secure his place in the ranks of influential, experimental twenty-first-century writers. Šalamun’s strengths are on display here: innocence and obscenity, closely allied; a great historical reach; and questions, commands, and statements of identity that challenge all norms and yet seem uncannily familiar and right— “I’m molasses, don’t forget that.” Coat of Arms

The wet sun stands on dark bricks. Through the king’s mouth we see teeth. He sews lips. The owl moves its head. She’s tired, drowsy and black. She doesn’t glow in gold like she’d have to.

This newest collection of poems from Tomaž Šalamun is exuberant, ambitious, and full of surprises. Here the devil is encountered and understood- I see the devil''s head, people, I see his whole body . . . he longs for innocence, as we do. Here the poet juggles many tones, languages, and countries. Desire is evoked as both frustrating and exhilarating- I''m watered by longing, knocking my head into the wall, on the ground, or I burn, burn, folded up on the couch. And memory comes back to remind us of the laws and experiences of childhood- Once again you are let loose in the sea only after five o''clock in the afternoon to take a dose of sunlight like the ticking of the clock. At once daring and clear-voiced, The Book for My Brother is an extraordinary achievement.

The work of this “eminent, still-wild spirit of Central Europe” (Publishers Weekly) continues to electrify. In The Blue Tower, language is remade with tenderness and abandon: “Rommel was kissing heaven’s dainty hands and yet / from his airplane above the Sahara my uncle / Rafko Perhauc still blew him to bits.” There is an effervescence and a sense of freedom to Tomaž Salamun’s poetry that has made him an inspiration to successive generations of American poets, “a poetic bridge between old European roots and the American adventure” (Associated Press). Trivial and monumental, beautiful and grotesque, healing, ferocious, mad: The Blue Tower is an essential volume.

Lauded poet Christopher Merrill hatched a brilliant plan: invite six other poets to join him in four days of writing in Iowa City. The poets would write for 30 minutes, creating a poem of 15 lines, and then read it aloud to the group. As poets heard the poems, they noted memorable words, images, and lines, which they would borrow to insert in subsequent poems of their own. These rounds continued, until, in a process of call and response and unprecedented collaboration, 80 poems had been composed. Those 80 poems are collected in this book, penned by authors who represent some of the best and brightest the world of poetry has to offer. Transcending differences of generation, gender, language, and vision, these poets have invented an entirely new facet of the poet’s creative process.

The penultimate work from renowned Slovenian poet Tomaž Šalamun, Andes was written less than three years before his death in 2014. Together, the poems of Andes are an exceptional and unusual journey that confronts both life and death across diverse continents, peoples, cities, languages, and histories. In his eulogy for Šalamun, the Slovene poet Miklavž Komelj said: “Šalamun achieved this highest level, where the real question regarding his poetry isn’t what someone thinks of it, or if someone likes it or not, but solely, if we are able to endure it or not.” Like life and the human condition itself, these poems are at times challenging but also absurd, celebratory, and ecstatic—and completely worth it. Translators Jeffrey Young and Katarina Vladimirov Young worked closely with Šalamun before his death and render here a translation absolutely faithful to his voice and intention.

Slovenian poet Tomaž Šalamun (1941-2014) is hailed as one of the most prominent poets of his generation, renowned for his impact on the Eastern European avant-garde movement. He authored over forty collections of poetry in Slovenian and English, and this collection exemplifies the best of what he is known for in its experiments with surrealism, polyphony, and absurdism. It’s the world we know made completely anew, where “City buses / resemble / quiet polite / people.” Salamun’s unique voice will linger on for years to come in the influence it has left with artists, writers, and readers.

Slovenian poet Tomaž Šalamun (1941-2014) is hailed as one of the most prominent poets of his generation, renowned for his impact on the Eastern European avant-garde movement. He authored over fifty collections of poetry in Slovenian and English, experimenting with surrealism, polyphony, and absurdism. In this collection, which he was preparing before his recent death, he shows his mastery of sound, of uncomfortable twists of expectations, and reveals alleyways into humanity with sharp, minty lines amidst physical chaos and violence. Šalamun has helped shape an era of poetics with his electric imagination, refusal of boxed-in logic and custom, and sophisticated concision. His voice will linger on for years to come in the influence it has left with artists, writers, and readers. For a career born from a violent world, he has left a beautiful Justice behind.

Redan med sin provokativa debut Poker skakade Tomaz Salamun (f. 1941) om det slovenska poesilandskapet med en lekfull, absurdistisk och fullständigt respektlös poesi. När jag läser dig, simmar jag är den andra samlingen av Salamun på svenska, den första på 18 år. Ett dikturval där han i sin poesi tillåter sig vara så lekfull som allvarlig, behärskad som ironisk, privat och universell. Med nära 40 publicerade diktsamlingar har Tomaz Salamun behållit sin ungdomliga energi och eleganta ironi. Han är idag inte bara Sloveniens mest översatta (över 35 språk) och kanske mest inflytelserika poet, han är också en av förgrundsfigurerna inom den amerikanska lyriken där hans poesi haft en betydande påverkan. Salamun har också varit verksam i USA både som kulturattaché och vid ett flertal universitet. För urvalet till När jag läser dig, simmar jag svarar författaren själv och för översättningen står Sophie Sköld i samarbete med Jonas Ellerström, som också skrivit bokens efterord.

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The penultimate work from renowned Slovenian poet Tomaž Šalamun, Andes was written less than three years before his death in 2014. Together, the poems of Andes are an exceptional and unusual journey that confronts both life and death across diverse continents, peoples, cities, languages, and histories. In his eulogy for Šalamun, the Slovene poet Miklavž Komelj said: “Šalamun achieved this highest level, where the real question regarding his poetry isn’t what someone thinks of it, or if someone likes it or not, but solely, if we are able to endure it or not.” Like life and the human condition itself, these poems are at times challenging but also absurd, celebratory, and ecstatic—and completely worth it. Translators Jeffrey Young and Katarina Vladimirov Young worked closely with Šalamun before his death and render here a translation absolutely faithful to his voice and intention.