Collected Ghazals
Collected Ghazals by Jim Harrison, published by Copper Canyon Press in 2020, presents a unique compilation of the author’s exploration of the ghazal form, a poetic tradition that originated in seventh-century Arabia. This edition, comprising 95 pages, showcases Harrison’s distinctive style, which blends traditional elements with his own passionate and often unrestrained voice. The collection reflects his deep engagement with the form, allowing readers to experience the vibrant energy and emotional depth that characterize his work.
In this volume, readers will find a range of themes that resonate throughout Harrison’s ghazals, including reflections on nature, human experiences, and the complexities of life. The poems are described as raucous and candid, often pushing the boundaries of conventional poetic forms. Accompanying the collection is an afterword by Denver Butson, which offers further insight into Harrison’s approach and the significance of his ghazals. This gathering of works invites readers to witness the raw and honest expressions of humanity that define Harrison’s poetic journey.
Official synopsis Publisher
“This collection arrives from the spirit world buoyant, its rowdy soul intact.”– Raúl Niño, Booklist
“Jim Harrison is a modern master of the [ghazal] form.” —BookRiot
The ghazal, a poetic form rooted in seventh century Arabia, became popular in the United States through the translations of Rumi, Hafiz, and Ghalib. As a young poet, Jim Harrison became enamored with ghazals, and while he ignored most of the formal rules, within the energized couplets he discovered a welcome vehicle for his driving passions, muscular genius, and wrecking-ball rages. The year Outlyer & Ghazals appeared, The New York Times honored the book with inclusion on their coveted “Noteworthy Titles” list, provocatively noting that these poems were “worth loving, hating, and fighting over.” Collected Ghazals gathers all of Harrisons’s published ghazals into a single volume, accompanied by an “Afterword” by poet and noted ghazal writer Denver Butson, who writes that with this collection, Harrison’s ghazals “are ours to witness again in all their messy, brave, honest, grieving, lustful, longing humanity.”
“These are raucous, boozy, at times sexually explicit journeys beyond standard forms, often expressing a young poet’s exuberance. Harrison wills us to follow him: ‘When I slept in the woods I awoke before dawn / and drank brandy and listened to the birds until the moon / disappeared.’ Closing with an illuminating afterword by poet Denver Butson, this collection arrives from the spirit world buoyant, its rowdy soul intact.”–Booklist
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