Review by Karen Langley
Pushkin Press is one of the UK’s best-loved and most successful indies. Founded in 1997, over the years they’ve issued a wide array of books; as well as championing the works of Stefan Zweig and spearheading the recent interest in classic Japanese crime writing, they’ve issued sparkling new translations of works in many languages, publishing novels, non-fiction and children’s books, both classic and contemporary. However, what might not be so well known is that Pushkin also publishes poetry, and two recent releases are a fine example of what they issue.
White Teeth, Red Blood: Selected Vampiric Verses
Vampires have been the subject of many novels and short stories over the years, but it’s perhaps less well known that there is a wide array of poetry on this particular subject. This fascinating anthology is edited, I believe, by Sofia Smith-Laing (although I can’t see that this is stated in the book itself) and comes with an introduction by Claire Kohda, author of Woman, Eating. Split into three sections – ‘Chilling Tales’, ‘Dire Warnings’ and ‘The Vampire Within’ – it looks at bloodsucking legends and stories from some interesting angles.
The first section is the longest and contains some substantial works from authors such as Goethe, Lord Byron, Coleridge and Tennyson. These are often extracts from longer works, and they make compelling reading. The whole of Coleridge’s ‘Christabel’, for example, is reproduced here; it’s an unfinished, seminal work with the titular character encountering a strange woman called Geraldine who begins to weave an enchantment around her, and whose body contains strange marks… ‘Dire Warnings’, the second section, features shorter works and these focus on the act of vampirism as something of a punishment – either for promoting war, being sexually active or even for rejecting a man! And ‘The Vampire Within’ takes the draining of lifeblood as a kind of metaphor – for the carrying of a child by Edna St Vincent Millay, for the power of the sun, or even for the effect of the Mona Lisa on those who view her image over the years. It’s certainly an interesting and usual way to explore the subject!
By necessity, most of the poems are classic works and so the occasional modern verse perhaps doesn’t sit quite so well in the book. Additionally, there are one or two prose pieces which explore the topic. However, it’s most certainly an intriguing selection and as Kohda makes clear in her introduction, she looks at the subject of vampire writing through a number of lenses and as a literary device. It’s an interesting way of exploring a number of issues, including misogyny and body horror, but I think personally that many of these vampire verses draw on past fears of the unknown. Whatever the source, however, they make appropriately chilling reading, especially for this time of year!
The Wanderer’s Song: Essential Poems by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Translated and introduced by John Kent
Pushkin has released a number of ‘Essential Poems’ collections, including volumes by Dylan Thomas and Rainer Maria Rilke, and so an edition bringing together a selection of Goethe’s work is very welcome. Although he’s mostly remembered for his ‘closet drama’ Faust, Goethe was something of a polymath – he published fiction, drama, philosophy, travel essays and scientific works during his long life, and his work was incredibly influential.
The Wanderer’s Song is an exemplary collection, and an ideal book to act as an introduction to his work. The translator is John Kent, a retired teacher who has been translating Goethe for sixty years – yet this is the first time his translations have been published. He provides an erudite introduction to the book, exploring Goethe’s life and giving the background to his poetry. The works are then divided into roughly chronological sections allowing the reader to enjoy following Goethe’s work from juvenilia to old age.
Goethe was a Romantic, and these poems are certainly personal. Often addressed to the women he loved, he experiments with form, producing both short and long works, and there’s much philosophy embedded in his poetry. Nature is often an inspiration and one notable poem is Gingko Biloba; it’s no secret, then, why the cover of this book is beautifully decorated with foiled impressions of that plant! Wanderers really is a lovely collection; splendidly put together with enlightening supporting material, it was a pleasure to read. I know no German but Kent’s translations read beautifully and he’s even managed to preserve many rhyming schemes, which is always impressive.
These are just two example of poetry releases from Pushkin, but on the basis of these I hope they’ll continue to release more. The ‘essential poems’ volumes are an excellent idea, perfect for providing an introduction to a new poet, and I can easily see a collection of these building up on the bookshelf! I’ll certainly be keeping an eye on their list to see which poetry books they release next.
Karen Langley blogs at kaggsysbookishramblings and thinks we should all read
more poetry ( www.kaggsysbookishramblings.wordpress.com )
White Teeth, Red Blood: Selected Vampiric Verses (Pushkin Press, 2025). 978-1805332640, 201pp., hardback. BUY at Blackwell’s via our affiliate link
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, The Wanderer’s Song: Essential Poems (Pushkin
Press, 2025). 978-1805333401. 251pp., paperback. BUY at Blackwell’s via our affiliate link.
