Introduction by John Berger. Translated by John Berger and Rema Hammami.
Last poems from the national poet of Palestine
Muralis the testimony of one of the most important and powerful poets of our age.
Mahmoud Darwish was the unofficial laureate of Palestine. One of the greatest poets of the last half-century, his work evokes the loss of his homeland and is suffused with the pain of dispossession and exile. Here, his close friends John Berger and Rema Hammami present a beautiful new translation of two of Darwish’s later works: his long masterpiece Mural, a contemplation of his life and work written following life-threatening surgery, and his last poem,The Dice Player, which Darwish read in Ramallah a month before his death.
Illustrated with original drawings by John Berger.
Reviews
"Darwish’s poetry is an epic effort to transform the lyrics of loss into the indefinitely postponed drama of return." Edward Said
"The most celebrated writer of verse in the Arab world." Adam Shatz, The New York Times
"The translation is very fine . . . It's a joy to read and among the very best Palestinian literature." Raja Shehadeh, author of Palestinian Walks
"Did as much as anyone to forge a Palestinian national consciousness." Peter Clark, The Guardian
"an exquisitely designed book, enhanced by several of Berger's evocative drawings ... Mural is a spiraling and circuitous poem, alive with swerves and sly twists, moving along corridors that dead-end only to open out unexpectedly into detours and hidden passageways. That single adjective, conspicuous in Darwish's spare style, presages the very structure of Mural." Eric Ormsby, Bookforum
Paperback / Verso / 80 pages / April 2024 / 9781804297117
