Search results for ""Author David Connolly""

This volume contains translations of two late collections by Odysseas Elytis (Nobel Prize for literature, 1979). According to the official announcement of the Swedish Academy, the Nobel Prize was awarded to Elytis “for his poetry, which, against the background of Greek tradition, depicts with sensuous strength and intellectual clear-sightedness modern man's struggle for freedom and creativeness.” The Oxopetra Elegies, which he published in November 1991 at the age of eighty, was immediately hailed as one of his finest works. Far from being a dialogue with death, as many critics hastily concluded, these elegies are laments for what is seen and perceived in certain “timeless moments” that, like the Oxopetra headland, project into the beyond, into another reality, revealing truths that, to the poet’s constant dismay, remain “unverifiable” and “unutterable.” The poems here function as a “contemporary form of magic,” a key opening the portals to this other reality, at least for those who speak Elytis’ language: the language of the Secret Sun. In West of Sorrow, published in November 1995, only months before his death, it becomes even clearer that his poetry remains, as it always was, a paean to life and love and beauty.

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Nikos Engonopoulos (1907–1985) was one of the most prominent representatives of Greek Surrealist poetry and painting. Closely associated with Andreas Embeirikos, the “patriarch” of Surrealism in Greece, and with Nicolas Calas, an influential figure of the European and American avant-garde, Engonopoulos developed highly experimental pictorial and poetic aesthetics. In both his paintings and poems, he engaged in a critical, often ironic dialogue with Greek history and cultural traditions and their ideological appropriations in established cultural and political discourses. Engonopoulos was arguably the keenest advocate of Surrealist black humor and irony in Greece. His overall approach to the Greek past, informed as it was by the socio-aesthetic principles of French Surrealism, constitutes one of the most ingenious and provocative cases of artistic mythogenesis in the European avant-garde.This volume offers a collection of his most representative poems, including his long poem Bolivár, which was written in the winter of 1942–1943 and soon acquired the status of an emblematic act of resistance against the Nazis and their allies (Italians and Bulgarians), who had occupied Greece in 1941.

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Derided and maligned more than any other Greek artist for his innovative and, at the time, often incomprehensible modernist experiments, Engonopoulos is today justifiably regarded as one of the most original artists of his generation and as a unique figure in Greek letters. Though he considered himself first a painter and only afterwards a poet, his poetry is widely read and admired, with many critical studies of his work appearing in recent years and with a growing recognition of its value and of its creative use of the Greek tradition and language. He enriched post-war Greek poetry with a host of poetic expressions, figures and images that have come to constitute part of the Greek poetic consciousness. In both his painting and poetry, he created a peculiarly Greek surrealism, a blending of the Dionysian and Apollonian, though always in keeping with basic surrealist tenets and, as such, his work is an important and original contribution not only to Modern Greek art and poetry but also to modern art and poetry worldwide.

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Fey Folk is characteristic of Papadiamandiss work. Its characters are quaint, simple-hearted folk living their humble lives in accordance with centuries-old traditions and customs, delightfully described by Papadiamandis with both reverence and humour. The setting is the hinterland of his native island of Skiathos with its intoxicating vegetation, its hillsides, springs and ravines, where the belief in spirits and the supernatural is deeply rooted in the consciousness of the otherwise God-fearing and devout inhabitants. Generally recognized as one of the foremost Greek prose writers of the modern period, Alexandros Papadiamandis holds a special place in the history of modern Greek letters, but also in the heart of the ordinary Greek reader.

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Yannis Loukas is editing his father's autobiography. Going through the family archives, he discovers the manuscript of an aspiring novelist named Loukas Matthaiou. While reading it, Yannis feels as if someone has put to paper his innermost thoughts. But who was the writer of this amazing story and what happened to him? Following in the tracks of this elusive stranger, Yannis' life takes an unforseen turn. He finds that everyone who met Matthaiou was profoundly affected by his charismatic personality. Driven by his quest to find Matthaiou, Yannis must first unravel the codes in his writing.

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Clutching his vodka and his memories, he seeks refuge on an island in the Cyclades. There by chance he meets a young woman who reactivates love's vocabulary. His survival instinct faintly reappears through the distorting mirror of alcohol. Yet the craving is an irresistible, clever adversary that shows no mercy. He is drawn by his love to places that affect his emotional world ever more forcefully. Moving from Paris and Munich to London and a mountain village in central Greece, he meets a young woman and it becomes clear that the greatest magic is to be found in reality, not the bottle.

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A stunning collection that draws from four decades of verse by one of modern Greece’s most lauded poets “Ganás skillfully melds loss with love. . . . A rich, rare view of a life spent in, or hoping to return, to Greece.”—Publishers Weekly This is the first English-language collection of work by the renowned Greek poet Michális Ganás. Originally from a remote village on the northwest border of Greece, Ganás witnessed the Greek Civil War as a young child and was taken into enforced exile in Eastern Europe with his family. Weaving together subtle references to the events and places that have defined his life’s story, Ganás’s terse and technically accomplished poems are a combination of folklore, autobiography, and recent history. Whether describing the mountains of his youth or the difficulties of acclimation in Athens of the 1960s and 1970s, Ganás’s writing is infused with striking and original imagery inspired by love, memory, and loss. Featuring expert translations—made in collaboration with Ganás himself—by David Connolly and Joshua Barley, this volume also includes a scholarly introduction to the poet’s life and work.

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Roïdes' irreverent, witty and delightful novel tells the story of Joan who, according to a popular medieval legend, ascended to the Papal Throne as Pope John VIII. The truth of the legend is of little importance as the book is far more than a historical novel and, in fact, parodies the popular historical romances of the time. In Joan, Roïdes has created one of the most remarkable characters in modern Greek literature and in so doing has assured his place as one of its classic authors.

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White Castle: The evaluation of an upstanding prehistoric enclosure in East Lothian describes the results of a four year research programme of archaeological works between 2010 and 2013, at the later prehistoric enclosure of White Castle, East Lothian, carried out under the auspices of the Rampart Scotland project. The site is a Scheduled Monument, but, despite being subject of mapping and survey for some 200 years, it has never been examined by excavation prior to the Rampart Scotland project’s interventions. White Castle was the first of the series of comparable sites to be excavated in the Lammermuir area. The programme of archaeological evaluation and sequence of radiometric dates furnished evidence for four major phases of activity at White Castle – with the main enclosure period dating to the second half of the first millennium BC. The excavations demonstrated a clear sequence of enclosure development over time, whereby the design and visual impact often appeared to be more important than defence alone. White Castle’s location on the main route through the Lammermuirs with surrounding upland pasture is also highly suggestive to its function and it seems probable that the site’s economy was concerned primarily with controlling access to grazing. The final phase of the prehistoric enclosure appears to combine two key factors: impressing visitors and stock control. While maintenance of White Castle’s enclosure system was abandoned in the closing centuries BC, it is unlikely that the area was deserted and there is also limited evidence for two later phases of activity on site around the Medieval and Early Modern Periods.

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An illustrated record book of theropod facts and figures—from the biggest to the fastest to the smartestThe theropod dinosaurs ruled the planet for millions of years, with species ranging from the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex to feathered raptors no bigger than turkeys. Dinosaur Facts and Figures is a stunningly illustrated book of records for these marvelous creatures—such as the biggest, the smallest, and the fastest theropods, as well as the ones with the most powerful bite.This one-of-a-kind compendium features more than 3,000 records, covers some 750 theropod species, and includes a wealth of illustrations ranging from diagrams and technical drawings to full-color reconstructions of specimens. The book is divided into sections that put numerous amazing theropod facts at your fingertips. “Comparing Species” is organized by taxonomic group and gives comparisons of the size of species, how long ago they lived, and when they were discovered. “Mesozoic Calendar” includes spreads showing the positions of the continents at different geological time periods and reconstructions of creatures from each period. “Prehistoric Puzzle” compares bones, teeth, and feathers while “Theropod Life” uses vivid, user-friendly graphics to answer questions such as which dinosaur was the smartest and which had the most powerful bite. Other sections chart theropod distribution on the contemporary world map, provide comprehensive illustrated listings of footprints, compile the physical specifications of all known theropods and Mesozoic birds, and much more. The essential illustrated record book for anyone interested in dinosaurs Features thousands of records on everything from the smartest and fastest theropods to the largest theropod eggs Includes more than 2,000 diagrams and drawings and more than 300 digital reconstructions Covers more than 750 theropod species, including Mesozoic birds and other dinosauromorphs Provides detailed listings of footprints, biometric specifications, and scholarly and popular references

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