In Search of the Essence of Place (Pushkin Collection) by Kral, Petr (October 16, 2012) Paperback

by Petr Král

Armed only with his poetic sensibility, Petr Kral sets out to explore our relationship with the places that we inhabit, and with the apparently unremarkable everyday objects which often inform and enrich our lives.Kral bears witness to Flaubert's observation that "in order for something to become interesting, we simply have to look at it for a long time." He reveals, not only the inner life-the very essence-of mundane objects and places, but also simple yet profound truths about ourselves.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, France

Unknown Binding

First published January 17, 2007

About the author

Poet and essayist, Petr Král was born in Prague in 1941. Beginning his studies with film, he later joined the troupe of post-surrealists surrounding Vratislav Effenberger.

In 1968, Petr Král fled to Paris, reinventing himself as a writer—quickly adopting the French language—writing in both French and Czech, merging surrealistic principles with elements from the Beat generation in Routes du Paradis {Routes of Paradise} and Pour une Europe bleue {For a Blue Europe}.

After editing Le Surréalisme en Tchécoslovaquie {Surrealism in Czechoslovakia} in 1983, Král shifted to incidental introspection, defining himself as a poet of detours.

Petr Král´s most recent work includes: Éra živých {Those Alive}, Základní pojmy {Basic Notions}, Masiv a trhliny {Massif and Cracks} in Czech and Pour l'ange {For the Angel} in French.

Petr Král lives in Prague.

Reviews

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

La puissance du lieu est ici arrachée à l’oubli ou à l’indifférence. Comme les objets, les lieux nous invitent à la réflexion et à la considération de notre simplicité d’existence.

Un très beau livre, de la maison idéale et ses pièces, aux maisons semblables d’Amérique.