12-28-09 Abby Contemplates Poetry
The Creatures Rest
by Alcman (7th century B.C.E.)
Now sleep mountain-top and chasm
headland and ravine,
creeping kinds that emerge from the black earth
beasts who roam the hillside, the race of bees,
and creatures submerged in the purple sea
now sleep, and tribes,
too, of the wide-winged.
This poetry book, edited by John Hollander and illustrated by Simona Mulazzani, has a wide range of poetry, including the poem above. It includes beautiful imagery and a lot of additional information. For example, in this poem, The Creatures Rest, it tells us that “Alcman was a very ancient Greek poet who lived in the seventh century. . . .only fragments of his poems survive. . .”
I recommend this book. I think it’s great!
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