Staff Reports Poetic Asia Verse Inspired by a Continent Startling, observant, tidy. The tradition of poetic expression in Asia specifically Japan and China has a distinct clarity.
Asian poets have a way of conveying their culture s moral and spiritual standards without preaching.
Even more remarkable, their voices capture these absolutes of ethics without verbosity. A selection of new, recently published, and backlist titles from independent presses give modern readers an introduction to a literary art form practiced by poetics contemporary and historic. Though not one of the country s many poets revered by the Chinese government, the eighth century poet continued to be held in high regard by Chinese writers and was also an inspiration to contemporary American authors Charles Frazier and Gary Snyder. A bilingual collection translated by Red Pine will be released this month by Copper Canyon Press, titled Collected Songs of Cold Mountain. The press first published the work nearly twenty years ago and the new edition has been significantly revised and expanded.