| Selected Writings of Blaise Cendrars Contributor(s): Cendrars, Blaise (Author), Albert, Walter (Editor), Miller, Henry (Preface by) |
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ISBN: 0811218880 ISBN-13: 9780811218887 Publisher: New Directions Publishing Corporation OUR PRICE: $17.10 Product Type: Paperback Published: September 1966 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Poetry | European - French - Literary Collections | Essays |
| Physical Information: 0.65" H x 5" W x 8" (0.70 lbs) 290 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - French |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: One of the great figures of modern French literature. Swiss-born in 1887, but French to the core in spirit, Cendrars roamed the world for many years, a restless seeker who made life an adventure and his novels and poems the record of a never-satisfied appetite for human experience. As a young man he reached the Orient across Russia, and "The Transsiberian," one of his finest long poems is included in this volume. Over the years, a number of Cendrars' works were translated into English--early among them, in 1931, John Dos Passos' brilliant version of "Panama, or the Adventures of My Seven Uncles" (reprinted in this collection)--but all are now out of print here, so that this selection from the whole range of Cendrars is most timely. It has been prepared by Professor Walter Albert of Brandeis University, whose long introductory essay is the most detailed biographical and critical study of Cendrars now available in English. While the greater part of the selection is concentrated on Cendrars' poetry (with the French text printed en face), there are also representative excerpts from the major novels and other prose books, as well as several essays, including impressions of Chagall and Picasso. |
Contributor Bio(s): Cendrars, Blaise: - Frederic-Louis Sauser was born on September 1, 1887 in La Chaux-de-Fonds in the Swiss canton of Neuchatel. At the outbreak of World War I, Cendrars--a fictitious name he assumed in 1907--joined the Foreign Legion. His military career was out short when he lost his right arm as a result of a wound. Adapting to his handicap he learned to type, write, and drive with his left hand. He returned to Paris and continued to write and serve as editor for the Editions de la Sirene as well as show an interest in moviemaking. Cendrars died in Paris in 1961. |