If I Only Knew

Nelly Sachs was a German poet who was highly regarded in her native Germany for her poetry about the history and suffering of the Jewish people. She is often considered a difficult poet, but her work is not difficult to understand if it is read against the backdrop of the events that gave rise to it. This chapbook presents a selection of poems from throughout Sachs's main writing years and provides general background and contextual explanations to individual poems, making it an excellent introduction to her work for new readers.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 48 pages
Publication date: 20 December 2023
Publisher: Arc Publications

Nelly Sachs, a renowned poet who delved into the history and plight of the Jewish people, achieved immense recognition in her native Germany when she received the prestigious Nobel Prize for Literature in 1966. She was often hailed as a poet of reconciliation and healing, although the extent to which this characterization holds true remains a subject of debate. Due to the intricacy of her later poetry, Sachs is often considered a challenging poet, but her work can be grasped with greater understanding when considered against the backdrop of the events that inspired it and in the context of her own poetic evolution.

Jean Boase-Beiers' exceptional translations highlight Sachs' distinct voice, characterized by a blend of outrage, despair, and grief, but also encompassing elements of inquiry, irony, and even straightforward anger. This chapbook offers a curated selection of poems from across Sachs' extensive writing career, accompanied by concise background information and contextual explanations for each poem. By presenting these poems in a concise and accessible format, this chapbook provides an excellent entry point for new readers to explore the rich and profound world of Nelly Sachs' poetry.

Weight: 82g
Dimension: 139 x 216 x 8 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781911469391