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9 POEMS.
(Cambridge, Massachusetts: Exact Change, 1989). 330 x 230 mm. (13 x 9"). 23, [1] pp. FIRST EDITION. One of 500 copies.
Publisher's orange printed paper wrappers, in original unprinted glassine dust jacket. SIGNED AND INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR in ink on the half title: "Drink Bandol/ Chateau de Pibarnon/ 1990/ Charlie/ Nov 26, 1994." One trivial tear to glassine, otherwise flawless.
This poignant collection of poems is inscribed by the author to his dear friends. Charles Simic (1938-2023), winner of the 1990 Pulitzer Prize in poetry and U.S. Poet Laureate for 2007-08, wrote moving, surrealistic poetry often based on his own experiences, particularly his traumatic childhood in what was then Yugoslavia. This collection of poetry, subtitled "A Childhood Story," provides a child's-eye view of a war-torn city. The poems are brief, unsettling vignettes focusing on the small details that tell a larger story--the "stale hunk" of bread, "dusty store-window," clay toy soldiers, and "the lead. . . used for bullets." As the friendly inscription indicates, our copy is from the collection of Laure-Anne Bosselaar (b. 1943) and her husband Kurt Brown (1944-2013). Bosselaar is a Belgian-American poet, translator, and editor who has published numerous works of poetry in multiple languages, including five collections of her own works. She has received various prizes and recognitions (Pushcart, Isabella Gardner, Breadloaf) and was named Poet Laureate of Santa Barbara in 2019. Sometimes publishing jointly with Bosselaar, Brown was also a prolific poet and editor of anthologies, as well as the founder and first director of the Aspen Writer's Conference, playing a pivotal role in shaping its early vision and establishing Aspen as a literary center. It was through the Aspen Writer's Conference that Bosselaar and Brown became friends with Simic, when Brown invited Simic to speak at the conference in the early 1990s. Bosselaar, reminiscing on a friendship of over two decades, wrote that "Charlie (as he was known by his friends) and Kurt had a great friendship, and shared a common love for wine & poetry--so, often, the Simics would come to our house, and we’d have a 'good bottle' or two around a dinner I'd cook for them." (ST20338-047)
Price: $250.00