From Pulitzer Prize winner and former Poet Laureate Charles Simic comes a dazzling collection of poems as original, meditative, and humorous as the legendary poet himself.
This latest volume of poetry from Charles Simic, one of America's most celebrated poets, demonstrates his revered signature style—a mix of understated brilliance, wry melancholy, and sardonic wit. These seventy luminous poems range in subject from mortality to personal ads, from the simple wonders of nature to his childhood in war-torn Yugoslavia.
For over fifty years, Simic has delighted readers with his innovative form, quiet humor, and his rare ability to limn our interior life and concisely capture the depth of human emotion. These stunning, succinct poems—most no longer than a page, some no longer than a paragraph—validate and reinforce Simic's importance and relevance in modern poetry.
This collection showcases the signature elements of a master poet:
- Pulitzer Prize Winning Poetry: From a former U.S. Poet Laureate, experience the concise, powerful verse that has defined a generation of American literature.
- Surreal & Meditative: Encounter poems that blur the line between dream and reality, finding deep meaning in everyday objects from lost buttons to dead telephones.
- Wry & Sardonic Wit: Explore a unique worldview where profound observations on mortality are delivered with a sly, knowing humor.
- A Singular Voice: Journey from the streets of war-torn Yugoslavia to contemporary America in poems that are as deeply personal as they are universal.
Industry Reviews
"Charles Simic's The Lunatic is a series of short, vivid poems. Each magnifies a moment or scene to highlight its complexity, humor or strangeness. . . . Every page has its own vibrant life, sometimes troubling or poignant."
