The three sections of Bei Dao's affecting new book of poems, Old Snow --"Berlin," "Oslo," "Stockholm"--are poignant reminders of the restless and rootless life of the exile. All the poems in the present bilingual volume were written post-Tiananmen Square (June 4, 1989), and the poet refers back to this watershed both overtly ("Not your bodies but your souls/ shall share a common birthday') and in dense images of loss and betrayal ("old snow comes constantly, new snow comes not at all/ the art of creation is lost"). As ...
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The three sections of Bei Dao's affecting new book of poems, Old Snow --"Berlin," "Oslo," "Stockholm"--are poignant reminders of the restless and rootless life of the exile. All the poems in the present bilingual volume were written post-Tiananmen Square (June 4, 1989), and the poet refers back to this watershed both overtly ("Not your bodies but your souls/ shall share a common birthday') and in dense images of loss and betrayal ("old snow comes constantly, new snow comes not at all/ the art of creation is lost"). As renowned China scholar, Jonathan Spence commented on Bei Dao's earlier book, The August Sleepwalker : "The poet was obliged to create a new poetic idiom that was simultaneously a protective camouflage and an appropriate vehicle for 'unreality.'" Bonnie S. McDougall, whose translations of Bei Dao have been called "a major achievement in themselves," is Professor of Chinese at the University of Edinburgh. Working with Chinese writer in exile Chen Maiping (now residing in Oslo), she once again renders Bei Dao's poems into fluid and musical English.
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Add this copy of Old Snow: Poetry to cart. $5.79, good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Baltimore rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Halethorpe, MD, UNITED STATES, published 1991 by New Directions Publishing Corporation.
Add this copy of Old Snow: Poems to cart. $22.50, very good condition, Sold by ZENO'S rated 3.0 out of 5 stars, ships from San Francisco, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1991 by New Directions.
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Very Good jacket. New York. 1991. New Directions. 1st American Edition. Very Good in Dustjacket. 0811211827. Translated from the Chinese by Bonnie S. McDougall & Chen Maiping. Bilingual. 81 pages. hardcover. Jacket art by Shao Fei. Jacket design by Ellen C. Dawson. keywords: Asia China Literature Poetry Translated World Literature. DESCRIPTION-On August 2, 1949 Zhao Zhenkai was born in Beijing. His pseudonym Bei Dao literally means 'North Island, ' and was suggested by a friend as a reference to the poet's provenance from Northern China as well as his typical solitude. Dao was one of the foremost poets of the Misty School, and his early poems were a source of inspiration during the April Fifth Democracy Movement of 1976, a peaceful demonstration in Tiananmen Square. He has been in exile from his native China since the Tiananmen Square massacre of 1989. His books of poetry include The Rose of Time: New and Selected Poems(New Directions, 2010); Unlock (2000); At the Sky's Edge: Poems 1991-1996 (1996), for which David Hinton won the Harold Morton Landon Translation Award from The Academy of American Poets; Landscape Over Zero (1995); Forms of Distance (1994); Old Snow (1991); and The August Sleepwalker (1990). His work has been translated into over 25 languages. He is also the author of short stories and essays. In 1978, he and colleague Mang Ke founded the underground literary magazine Jintian (Today), which ceased publication under police order. In 1990, the magazine was revived and Bei Dao serves as the Editor-in-Chief. In his foreword to At the Sky's Edge, Bei Dao was a Stanford Presidential lecturer and has taught at the University of California at Davis, the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, and Beloit College in Wisconsin. In 2006, Bei Dao was allowed to move back to China. inventory #7917.
Add this copy of Old Snow: Poetry to cart. $39.02, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Santa Clarita, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1991 by New Directions.
Add this copy of Old Snow: Poetry to cart. $57.21, new condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Santa Clarita, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1991 by New Directions.
Add this copy of Old Snow: Poetry to cart. $62.52, new condition, Sold by Just one more Chapter rated 3.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Miramar, FL, UNITED STATES, published 1991 by New Directions.
