Monthly Archives: October 2013

SONOSUONO, by Alex Caldiero

Posted on October 22, 2013 by Scott Abbott

The newest addition to the Elik Poetry Series (the brainchild of Andy Hoffman) and to Alex Caldiero’s extensive body of work (his Body/Dreams/Organs was also published by Elik Press) is the volume titled sonosuono. Does the title mean “we are sound”? I … Continue reading →

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Titan’s Sly and Impatient Narrator

Posted on October 11, 2013 by Scott Abbott

Reading the first pages of Jean Paul’s novel, I have rediscovered how difficult it is. And it’s the narrator’s fault! He knows so much about so many things that he can’t help stuffing it all into every sentence. He is … Continue reading →

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The poems that make up Alex Caldiero’s Sonosuono speak to each other as brothers and sisters around a kitchen table in a passionate discussion of origins, of the importance of place. Much like the William Carlos Williams of Paterson, or the Anne Waldman … Continue reading →

Posted on October 10, 2013 by Scott Abbott | Leave a comment

Translating Jean Paul Richter

Posted on October 10, 2013 by Scott Abbott

I just found an 1862 translation of Jean Paul’s Titan, done by Charles T. Books and published in Boston by Ticknor and Fields. He writes in his translator’s preface about some of the difficulties he encountered: “The Translator (or Transplanter, for … Continue reading →

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Jean Paul’s TITAN and Fichte’s Philosophy

Posted on October 8, 2013 by Scott Abbott

“Nein, begleitet mich, mein Herr (sagte Schoppe ungestüm) . . . ich wäre jetzt alleine vis-a-vis de moi.” (No, come with me Sir, Schoppe said heatedly, . . . otherwise I will be alone vis-a-vis myself.) “Ich versteh´dich nicht (sagte … Continue reading →

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“Motto” for Jean Paul’s Novel DIE UNSICHTBARE LOGE (The Invisible Lodge)

Posted on October 7, 2013 by Scott Abbott

Der Mensch ist der große Gedankenstrich im Buche der Nature (Auswahl aus des Teufels Papieren) A human is the great hyphen in Nature’s book (Excerpt from the Devil’s Papers) p.s. After making that translation, I thought again about the wordplay in … Continue reading →

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New Edition of Peter Handke’s REPETITION

Posted on October 5, 2013 by Scott Abbott

The Last Books, Amsterdam, has just published a new edition of Peter Handke’s novel REPETITION. Ralph Manheim’s translation had gone out of print and Phil Baber negotiated the rights for this reprint. He designed the book, which has one of … Continue reading →

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Dreaming the Southern Slavs

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Scott Abbott

He lay in bed thinking about the new book by Zarko Radakovic and David Albahari, Knjiga o muzici, the “Book about Music.” He couldn’t read it because it was in Serbian. He thought about Albahari’s novel Ludwig, which he had just read … Continue reading →

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