Description

Book Synopsis

A stunning, intimate collection by the late great Polish poet Adam Zagajewski.

. . . I think I sought wisdom

(without resignation) in poems
and also a certain calm madness.
I found, much later, a moment's joy
and melancholy's dark contentment.


In True Life, the Polish writer Adam Zagajewski, one of the world's most admired and beloved poets, turns his gaze to the past with piercing clarity and a tone of wry, lyrical melancholy. He captures the rhythms of a city street on the page and the steady beat of the passage of time against it (Roads cannot be destroyed // Even if peonies cover them / smelling like eternity) and writes of the endless struggle between stasis and change, between movement and stillness (We knew / it would be the same / as always // It would all go back to normal).

Mary Oliver called Zagajewski the most pertinent, impressive, meaningful poet of our time, and Philip Boehm wrote in The New York Times Book

True Life

Product form

£19.50

Includes FREE delivery

RRP £26.00 – you save £6.50 (25%)

Order before 4pm today for delivery by Sat 10 Jan 2026.

A Hardback by Adam Zagajewski

10 in stock


    View other formats and editions of True Life by Adam Zagajewski

    Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux Inc
    Publication Date: 21/02/2023
    ISBN13: 9780374601560, 978-0374601560
    ISBN10: 0374601569
    Also in:
    Poetry

    Description

    Book Synopsis

    A stunning, intimate collection by the late great Polish poet Adam Zagajewski.

    . . . I think I sought wisdom

    (without resignation) in poems
    and also a certain calm madness.
    I found, much later, a moment's joy
    and melancholy's dark contentment.


    In True Life, the Polish writer Adam Zagajewski, one of the world's most admired and beloved poets, turns his gaze to the past with piercing clarity and a tone of wry, lyrical melancholy. He captures the rhythms of a city street on the page and the steady beat of the passage of time against it (Roads cannot be destroyed // Even if peonies cover them / smelling like eternity) and writes of the endless struggle between stasis and change, between movement and stillness (We knew / it would be the same / as always // It would all go back to normal).

    Mary Oliver called Zagajewski the most pertinent, impressive, meaningful poet of our time, and Philip Boehm wrote in The New York Times Book

    Recently viewed products

    © 2025 Book Curl

      • American Express
      • Apple Pay
      • Diners Club
      • Discover
      • Google Pay
      • Maestro
      • Mastercard
      • PayPal
      • Shop Pay
      • Union Pay
      • Visa

      Login

      Forgot your password?

      Don't have an account yet?
      Create account