Neruda and Vallejo: Selected Poems

An odd book, or, more accurately, an odd book to find republished. The translations have mostly been superseded by more comprehensive recent versions, so the interest here lies mainly in Robert Bly's blatant anxiety of influence. As his annoyingly opinionated introductions and fawning interview with Neruda demonstrate, he desperately wants to be on a par with these two great poets, while...more

An odd book, or, more accurately, an odd book to find republished. The translations have mostly been superseded by more comprehensive recent versions, so the interest here lies mainly in Robert Bly's blatant anxiety of influence. As his annoyingly opinionated introductions and fawning interview with Neruda demonstrate, he desperately wants to be on a par with these two great poets, while simultaneously realising that he isn't. When he berates the contemporary American poetry scene for not creating their equals (or their facsimiles) he is really shouting at a mirror....   hide