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Out of one of the most troubled countries in the world comes a passionate, eloquent voice into the agora of world poetry. The Ukrainian poet Dmytro Kremin sings powerfully and insightfully the ethos of the Ukrainian people. At the same time, he exhibits a remarkable alertness to the role of the poet in the contemporary global reality. Poems from the Scythian Wild Field presents the first book-length English translation of poetry by this major Ukrainian literary figure, who, with his intellectual acuity, his deep and wide-ranging grasp of history, myth, and culture, and his encompassing life-affirming imaginative vision, offers work of great authenticity and weighty momentum. This volume will be of immense value for readers of important contemporary international poetry.
“…Dmytro Kremin loves the world – its sky, land, sea, sand; he loves an ant, a bird… He loves woman, children, friends, enemies… He loves history, nature, the future… Because for him to love – is as natural as to feel freedom.”
~ Oleksandra Ignatovych, from “The Untamed World of Dmytro Kremin” in Writers of Zakarpattia
Dmytro Kremin (Дмитро Кремінь) is one of the leading poets of Ukraine. Born in western Ukraine, he graduated from Uzhhorod University in Philology. Later, he moved to Mykolaiv, in southern Ukraine, where he now lives. Kremin works as an editor and reporter for the Mykolaiv newspaper, Ridne Prybuzhia, and as an instructor at the University of Ukraine. He is currently the head of the Mykolaiv branch of Ukraine’s National Union of Writers. Kremin has published twenty collections of poetry since the late 1970s, including the acclaimed Pectoral (1997), Elegy for Trojan Wine (2001), and The Hunt for the Wild Boar (2006). In addition, he has published Ukrainian translations of Slovak and Russian poetry. He has received an array of awards for his poetry and overall contribution to Ukrainian culture.
Svetlana Ischenko (Світлана Іщенко) is a poet, translator, stage actress, and teacher. Ischenko immigrated to Canada in 2001, where she has published two collections of poetry in English, In the Mornings I Find a Crane’s Feathers in My Damp Braids (2005) and The Rain Dance of Dana (2006). She lives in North Vancouver, British Columbia.
Russell Thornton is a Canadian poet. His collection Birds, Metals, Stones & Rain (2013) was nominated for Canada’s Governor General’s Award for Poetry. His collection The Hundred Lives (2014) was nominated for the Griffin Poetry Prize. | |