Review
"An accused blasphemer deeply devoted to Franciscan Catholicism, a Gramscian communist permanently expelled from the party, an avowed homosexual dedicated to the consensual sexual freedom of everyone, a champion of the local on a global scale, a neorealist of the imagination, and a radically innovative poet alienated from the existing practices of the avant-garde: Pasolini is not so much a figure of contradictions as he is a force against the incoherence hiding in every hypocrisy." -- Susan Stewart ― The Nation
"This substantial bilingual edition of 76 poems, most drawn from seven major collections published in Italian between 1954 and 1971 and including some that appeared posthumously in 2003, is a welcome step toward redressing the damaging imbalance in the image of Pasolini conventionally offered to readers of English. Sartarelli's intelligent, stylish translations are accompanied by copious and helpful notes, a bibliography and filmography, and a spirited and very useful introduction. Wide-ranging, authoritative, and handsomely produced, Sartarelli's volume establishes itself immediately as by far the best selection of Pasolini's poetry available in English; its publication is a landmark in Pasolini studies. . . . Essential."
― CHOICE
“Pasolini is known as a filmmaker and political rebel, and for his tragic death, yet he was first and most importantly a poet. Sartarelli’s brilliant translations have at last made his searingly beautiful poetry available to English-language readers.” -- John Ashbery
“Sartarelli’s impeccable and inspired translations will be of incommensurable value to all students of Pasolini’s oeuvre. This new English edition of Pasolini’s poems is the most comprehensive and the most accurate version available in the Anglo-American world. Although Pasolini saw himself primarily as a poet, outside Italy his vast poetic production has not received the critical attention it certainly deserves. Sartarelli’s generous selection and his sincere dedication will enhance our understanding of one of the major European artists of the twentieth century.” -- Armando Maggi, University of Chicago
“The remarkable range of Pasolini’s poetic achievements, which in myriad ways underpin his renowned work in cinema and fiction, is brilliantly represented in Sartarelli’s impressive bilingual edition. His translations convincingly convey Pasolini’s densely woven, allusive poems, their musicality, passion, and lyricism. The touch of Sartarelli’s confident, sensitive hand, of a poet who is also a scholar, has brought a most welcome new edition of one of the most important literary and cultural figures of the twentieth century.” -- Patrick Barron, University of Massachusetts Boston
About the Author
Pier Paolo Pasolini (1922–75) was an Italian film director, writer, and intellectual.
Stephen Sartarelli has translated widely from French and Italian, most recently works by Andrea Camilleri and Gabriele D’Annunzio. His translations have won numerous prizes, including the Raiziss-De Palchi Award of the Academy of American Poets for Songbook: Selected Poems of Umberto Saba and the John Florio Award of the UK Society of Authors for Prince of the Clouds by Gianni Riotta.
