I’m told that a review of Kleine Tiere / Small Animals will appear in the Swiss literary journal ORTE. The book has been published in a bilingual (German-English) edition by Stadtlichter Presse. The review is by Clemens Umbricht. Here are some excerpts. — JH
“In his new book of poems Jan Herman writes: ‘Great beauty from great despair unbends the mind. That is the goal of every poet.‘ . . . Kleine Tiere [is] a slim volume by a lyricist who has achieved his goal.
“The poem that gives the volume its title begins:
Shall we now weep
to leave the sun behind,
lightly pencilled in?‘
“The melancholy pencil drawing of those lines is found in comparable hatching in all the poems. Reading them leaves a lasting impression.”
This is the review in full:
Jan Herman: KleineTiere. 29 deformed sonnets, translated from the American by Florian Vetsch. Stadtlichter Presse / Wennestorfer Kirchweg 65 / 21279 Wenzendordf / Germany
Postscript: Oct. 10 — From a display of Stadtlichter Presse publications at a recent bookfair in southern Germany:
