A Wild Peculiar Joy: The Selected Poems

by Irving Layton

A Wild Peculiar Joy is Irving Layton’s poetic testament. Hailed as the great lyric poet, Irving Layton has come to be known as one of Canada’s most powerful, groundbreaking voices, an important and influential writer whose distinguished career spanned almost forty-five years. By turns passionate and grave, joyous and apocalyptic, his beautifully crafted poems are illuminated by a strong social and political conscience, and an intensely humanistic view of the world. This is poetry that is timeless and universal. Drawn from his entire body of work, and now reissued in this handsomely redesigned volume, this edition includes a new introduction by Sam Solecki, and selected short excerpts from Irving Layton’s writings on the craft of poetry. A Wild Peculiar Joy once again makes available to readers the poetry of Irving Layton and stands as the author’s definitive selected.

Genres: Poetry, Canada

384 pages, Paperback

First published March 23, 1982

About the author

Poet, Teacher.

Born as Israel Pincu Lazarovitch, author Irving Layton immigrated to Canada in 1913, as a baby, his family settling on the infamous St. Urbain Street in the city of Montreal. In the heavily French-speaking province of Quebec, some locals were weary of English foreigners and Jewish families, however, the Lazarovitches adapted to the city where a great Canadian literary scene flourished, producing several English (Canadian) authors such as Mordecai Richler, Leonard Cohen and Louis Dudek.

In the early 1930's, Irving Layton received a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture from MacDonald College. In 1946, he received his M.A. in Political Science. He also began teaching English, History, and Political Science at the Jewish parochial high school, Herzliah, in 1949. He taught modern English and American poetry at Sir George Williams University (now Concordia) and worked as a tenured professor at York University in the 1970s. He lectured occasionally at McGill University in Political Science. He taught English and Literature at the Jewish Public Library.

Irving Layton often recited his works at readings and travelled the world doing so, gaining fame and popularity. Over the course of his life, Irving Layton received many awards and honours for his writing. In 1959, Irving Layton received the Governor-General's Award for "A Red Carpet for the Sun." He was titled an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1976. In 1981, he was nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature by Italy and South Korea. He also received the Petrarch Award for Poetry.

Well loved, Irving led a full life surrounded by students, friends and family. He was married four times - to Faye Lynch, Harriet Bernstein, Annette Pottier and Betty Sutherland. He also lived with a woman named Aviva Cantor for several years. He fathered four children during his life named Max, Naomi, David and Samantha Clara.

Reviews

[Abby · Rating 3 out of 5]

A brilliant introduction to one of Canada's Greats -- and a Great who's great for a reason. Layton's poems are beautiful, ecstatic, and heart-breaking. Many of them are also misogynistic, but I take some comfort in the fact that Layton seems to hate most of humanity, not just women in particular.

[Liv · Rating 2 out of 5]

He says he wants to be 'to the point' in his poetry, yet I found it a little bit difficult to understand with his use of imagery and terminology. Otherwise, rather blunt and honest, which I can definitely appreciate.

[adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩, 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘬𝘴 𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘺. 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘨𝘶𝘳𝘦, 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘵𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘯’𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘺. 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘐 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘱𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵𝘴. 𝘐 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘨𝘴 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘰𝘧 𝘶𝘴.










𝕍𝕚𝕥𝕒 𝔸𝕖𝕥𝕖𝕣𝕟𝕒

𝔸𝕥 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕙𝕖𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕚𝕣 𝕓𝕚𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕢𝕦𝕒𝕣𝕣𝕖𝕝
𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕠𝕞𝕒𝕟 𝕥𝕒𝕦𝕟𝕥𝕖𝕕 𝕙𝕚𝕞:
“ℙ𝕠𝕖𝕥𝕣𝕪 𝕚𝕤 𝕠𝕟𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕘, 𝕝𝕚𝕗𝕖 𝕒𝕟𝕠𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕣.”

𝔸𝕟𝕕 𝕚𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕖𝕕 𝕤𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕒𝕤 𝕣𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 𝕥𝕠 𝕕𝕠 𝕤𝕠,
𝕗𝕠𝕣 𝕙𝕖𝕣 𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕖𝕗 𝕕𝕒𝕪𝕤 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕤𝕠𝕠𝕟 𝕓𝕖 𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕣
𝕓𝕦𝕥 𝕤𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕝𝕚𝕧𝕖 𝕚𝕟𝕗𝕒𝕞𝕠𝕦𝕤
𝕚𝕟 𝕙𝕚𝕤 𝕡𝕠𝕖𝕞𝕤 𝕗𝕠𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕣.



𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐧𝐧𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞?
𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐨𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐤?
𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐭𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝
𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐮𝐧 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐚 𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦
𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬

𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐳𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐭
𝐑𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐖𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐏𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐠𝐧𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬;
𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐢𝐬𝐞
𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐮𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐮𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐨𝐲𝐬

𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐚 𝐣𝐮𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐢𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫; 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦
𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐮𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐝



𝙽𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚑 𝙾𝚏 𝙴𝚍𝚎𝚗

𝚁𝚞𝚖 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙲𝚘𝚔𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚖𝚢 𝚑𝚊𝚗𝚍,
𝙸 𝚋𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚛𝚢 𝚙𝚒𝚝𝚜
𝚝𝚠𝚘 𝚊𝚝 𝚊 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚜𝚜


𝙸𝚝’𝚜 𝚜𝚘 𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚎𝚝 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚐𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚎𝚗
𝙸 𝚜𝚠𝚎𝚊𝚛 𝙸 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚜
𝚌𝚕𝚊𝚖𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚎𝚝𝚊𝚕 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚏

𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝙸 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚖 𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚔 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚏𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝚓𝚘𝚢
𝚋𝚊𝚌𝚔 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚢 𝚏𝚒𝚛𝚜𝚝 𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚍𝚑𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚐𝚗𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜
𝚒𝚗 𝚌𝚑𝚘𝚔𝚎𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚜𝚞𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚛 𝚍𝚞𝚜𝚝


𝙼𝚘𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚖𝚢 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚜




ℙ𝕣𝕠𝕥𝕖𝕦𝕤 𝔸𝕟𝕕 ℕ𝕪𝕞𝕡𝕙


𝕀 𝕡𝕦𝕥 𝕕𝕠𝕨𝕟 𝕞𝕪 𝕓𝕠𝕠𝕜
𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕖 𝕒𝕥 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕕𝕚𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕟𝕥 𝕙𝕒𝕫𝕖;
𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕝𝕠𝕦𝕕-𝕧𝕠𝕚𝕔𝕖𝕕 𝔾𝕣𝕖𝕖𝕜𝕤 𝕒𝕣𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕕 𝕞𝕖
𝕔𝕙𝕠𝕞𝕡𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕚𝕣 𝕗𝕚𝕤𝕙 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕡𝕖𝕡𝕠𝕟𝕚,
𝕀 𝕞𝕦𝕤𝕥 𝕣𝕖𝕔𝕜𝕠𝕟 𝕀’𝕞 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕒𝕘𝕖-𝕠𝕝𝕕 𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤
𝕠𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕙𝕦𝕞𝕒𝕟 𝕔𝕠𝕟𝕕𝕚𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟.
ℕ𝕠𝕚𝕤𝕪 𝕗𝕠𝕠𝕝𝕤. 𝕀’𝕞 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕒𝕧𝕖𝕤
𝕘𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕝𝕪 𝕔𝕦𝕡𝕡𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕓𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕤𝕥𝕤
𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝𝕪 𝕟𝕪𝕞𝕡𝕙 𝕛𝕦𝕤𝕥 𝕣𝕚𝕤𝕖𝕟 𝕗𝕣𝕠𝕞 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕖𝕒
𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕒𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕝𝕒𝕡𝕡𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕙𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕤

𝕎𝕙𝕖𝕟 𝕤𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕨𝕚𝕞𝕤 𝕒𝕨𝕒𝕪
𝕤𝕙𝕖 𝕡𝕦𝕝𝕝𝕤 𝕞𝕪 𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤 𝕒𝕗𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝕙𝕖𝕣
𝕚𝕟 𝕨𝕒𝕥𝕖𝕣𝕪 𝕤𝕥𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕜𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕝𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥. 𝕀 𝕓𝕖𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕖
𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕖𝕒 𝕒𝕣𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕕 𝕙𝕖𝕣
𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕤𝕙𝕖 𝕟𝕖𝕤𝕥𝕝𝕖𝕤 𝕚𝕟 𝕞𝕪 𝕝𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕘𝕣𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝕒𝕣𝕞𝕤
𝕠𝕣 𝕚𝕤 𝕙𝕖𝕝𝕕 𝕚𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕗𝕝𝕠𝕨𝕚𝕟𝕘
𝕨𝕒𝕧𝕖𝕝𝕖𝕥𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕞𝕪 𝕨𝕙𝕚𝕥𝕖 𝕙𝕒𝕚𝕣.
𝕀 𝕓𝕚𝕝𝕝𝕠𝕨 𝕒𝕓𝕠𝕧𝕖 𝕙𝕖𝕣 𝕝𝕚𝕜𝕖 𝕒 𝕕𝕠𝕝𝕡𝕙𝕚𝕟
𝕤𝕥𝕣𝕠𝕜𝕖 𝕙𝕖𝕣 𝕝𝕚𝕞𝕓𝕤 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕟𝕚𝕡 𝕙𝕖𝕣 𝕣𝕠𝕤𝕪 𝕟𝕖𝕔𝕜 𝕒𝕟𝕕
𝕤𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕝𝕕𝕖𝕣𝕤 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕤𝕙𝕒𝕣𝕡 𝕦𝕟𝕔𝕖𝕒𝕤𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕜𝕚𝕤𝕤𝕖𝕤
𝕥𝕚𝕝𝕝 𝕝𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕦𝕠𝕣𝕠𝕦𝕤𝕝𝕪 𝕤𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕝𝕚𝕡𝕤 𝕥𝕠 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕣𝕚𝕓𝕓𝕖𝕕 𝕤𝕒𝕟𝕕
𝕨𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕖 𝕦𝕟𝕕𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕙𝕒𝕝𝕠𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕗𝕚𝕤𝕙
𝕗𝕖𝕣𝕟 𝕨𝕖𝕖𝕕 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕖𝕟𝕒𝕞𝕠𝕦𝕣𝕖𝕕 𝕤𝕖𝕒-𝕤𝕟𝕒𝕜𝕖
𝕀 𝕢𝕦𝕚𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕓𝕖𝕥𝕨𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝕙𝕖𝕣 𝕤𝕚𝕝𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕤




𝓛’𝓮𝓷𝓿𝓸𝓲


𝓘𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝔀𝓮𝓻𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓵𝓪𝓼𝓽
𝓪𝓫𝓼𝓸𝓵𝓾𝓽𝓮𝓵𝔂 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓵𝓪𝓼𝓽
𝓹𝓸𝓮𝓶
𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝔀𝓮𝓻𝓮 𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻𝔂 𝓰𝓸𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓸 𝔀𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓮
𝔀𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝔀𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝔀𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓮?

“𝓦𝓸𝓻𝓵𝓭, 𝓲𝓽’𝓼 𝓫𝓮𝓮𝓷 𝓰𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓽 𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝔂𝓸𝓾;
𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓼𝓾𝓷, 𝓶𝓸𝓸𝓷, 𝓼𝓽𝓪𝓻𝓼, 𝓫𝓮𝓪𝓾𝓽𝓲𝓯𝓾𝓵 𝔀𝓸𝓶𝓮𝓷
𝔀𝓪𝓿𝓮𝓼 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓰𝓻𝓪𝓿𝓮𝓼

𝓘 𝓵𝓮𝓪𝓿𝓮 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓷𝓸𝔀
𝓪 𝓖𝓻𝓮𝓮𝓴 𝓾𝓻𝓷
𝓖𝓸𝓸𝓭-𝓷𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽, 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓯𝓪𝓻𝓮𝔀𝓮𝓵𝓵”

[Peter B Waddell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beefy volume, one I can believe is a comprehensive and representative selection of Layton's work. There is refreshing variety of form, with details that personalise his themes reflecting an earlier era while offering links to our own...big themes of beauty, sex, love, death, nature, Jewishness...drawn fresh from the poet's home country Canada and from a rich odyssey through Europe and the East.

(And, FYI, he was a mentor and lifelong friend to Leonard Cohen...)

[Fionnbharr Rodgers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting collection ranging from the personal to profane; lyric and didactic/ Incredibly moving, in ways both good and bad. Most touching example is this poem he wrote for his sister, in the midst of Alzeihmer’s which he would later die of two: https://pwchaltas.com/2013/04/19/one-...

Hopeful voice thru the long and lonesome night.

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing read. Layton's sexuality, coarseness, awareness of history, Jewishness, and use of metaphor, are superb. I found his essays and letters on the role of the poet to be particularly helpful and insightful. A surprisingly great anthology I strongly recommend.

[David]

Irving Layton was one of Leonard Cohen's classmates and good friend. I read Layton's poems because he had a similar free spirited relationship with Jewish tradition as Cohen and this spirit brings life back into Jewish texts and builds new meaning and relevance to antique Jewish symbols, such as with the title poem A WILD PECULIAR JOY:

"King David, flushed with wine
is dancing before the Ark;
the virgins are whispering to each other
and the elders are pursing their lips
but the king knows the Lord delights
in the sight of a valorous man
dancing in the pride of life...

...no one listens, none of the throng is fired
with his wild peculiar joy. So bowing low
he kisses the Ark thrice
and with a last joyous cry reels singing to his tent
to compose a boisterous hymn in praise of the Lord."

Layton has much wisdom from intellectual and spiritual struggle to share. He indicates his reverence for a few Jewish touchstones:

"Iconoclasts, dreamers, men who stood alone:
Freud and Marx, the great Maimonades
and Spinoza who defied even his own.
In my veins runs their rebellious blood.
I tread with them the selfsame antique road
and seek everywhere the faintest scent of God."

There is something fascinating to me about the concentration of extraordinary Jewish poets in Montreal during the 1950-1960s- the beauty and vividness of these poems seems up there with the Medieval Jewish poets. They even share the use of eroticism and sensuality in exploring G-d and spirituality. Leonard Cohen uses eroticism more effectively than Layton. Layton's poems about his relationship with women are very objectifying, lustful, and superficial. Whereas, Cohen, who wrote some objectifying poems about women, was able to find much more depth in his poems about lovers. He also was able to transcend sensuality to suggest metaphysical relationships with G-d. Layton, however, does not quite hit that mark but does animate Jewish symbols within modern contexts masterfully.

Next I hope to check out Cohen's and Layton's poetry professor at McGill, Abraham Klein.

[Nick McRae · Rating 4 out of 5]

If there was a single book of Layton's to get a sampling of his style from this would be that title. Being a selection of poems throughout the greater part of his career you'll get the highlights of his work, the best of the best.

There is most definitely some strong writing in this title, but too many of the poems just come across a bitter, excessively cynical. Everyone gets it, humanity is flawed, but Layton seemed to make it his personal vendetta to point that out at every turn, while at the same time being blind to the overwhelming number of kindhearted people out there who spend their lives quietly helping others. One wonders how much of that Layton did himself.

Which really gets us to the heart of the matter of Layton's poetry. Can someone with such a distorted view of the world truly create resonant art? He could definitely write, but I would argue that the answer to that question is no, and particularly in poetry. Layton's bitterness and arrogance touches almost everything he writes, which colors the feeling of his writing. I think the most you can say is that he wrote interesting poetry, definitely worth reading to understand who he was. But I wouldn't say I'm having a great time with his titles beyond studying his craft.

[Mina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading and studying some of his poems for a class, I thought I didn't like Irving Layton. His poems are often beautiful, expressive, and interestingly crafted, but what they suggest of his personality wasn't appealing to me and so I was about ready to strike him off my list of writers to get to know better. But then I went to an event celebrating the centenary of his birth, and heard a diverse group of people read a good variety of his poems, primarily from this volume. Somehow what I found to be brash and alienating when reading on my own and dissecting with an indifferent group of classmates became intensely engaging and evocative when read aloud by others. I still might find Layton's personality abrasive and frustrating, but I know now not to let that get in the way of exploring his poetry and am looking forward to a re-read - or rather, a first proper read through - of this collection. 13 March/12

[Anna Pottier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great place to start on one's discover-Layton journey. The range, depth, wit, and insightfulness only increases with each reading. I liken Layton's work to a handrail through the hell of the twentieth century. He is often mis-read, but that's fine. There is much in his work yet to be discovered let alone appreciated.