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Pablo Neruda: Absence and Presence
Nobel Prize winner Pablo Neruda wrote often about the natural world and the beloved objects he surrounded himself with. In this beautiful printing of Poirot’s classic work―featuring new scans from newly made prints―we come to know the poet’s magical world through his poems, his houses, the wonderful things he collected, and his friends. 84 photographs
192 pages, Paperback
First published July 17, 2004
18 people are currently reading
1689 people want to read
About the author
Pablo Neruda
1,082 books9,623 followersPablo Neruda, born Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto in 1904 in Parral, Chile, was a poet, diplomat, and politician, widely considered one of the most influential literary figures of the 20th century. From an early age, he showed a deep passion for poetry, publishing his first works as a teenager. He adopted the pen name Pablo Neruda to avoid disapproval from his father, who discouraged his literary ambitions. His breakthrough came with Veinte poemas de amor y una canción desesperada (Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair, 1924), a collection of deeply emotional and sensual poetry that gained international recognition and remains one of his most celebrated works.
Neruda’s career took him beyond literature into diplomacy, a path that allowed him to travel extensively and engage with political movements around the world. Beginning in 1927, he served in various consular posts in Asia and later in Spain, where he witnessed the Spanish Civil War and became an outspoken advocate for the Republican cause. His experiences led him to embrace communism, a commitment that would shape much of his later poetry and political activism. His collection España en el corazón (Spain in Our Hearts, 1937) reflected his deep sorrow over the war and marked a shift toward politically engaged writing.
Returning to Chile, he was elected to the Senate in 1945 as a member of the Communist Party. However, his vocal opposition to the repressive policies of President Gabriel Gonzalez Videla led to his exile. During this period, he traveled through various countries, including Argentina, Mexico, and the Soviet Union, further cementing his status as a global literary and political figure. It was during these years that he wrote Canto General (1950), an epic work chronicling Latin American history and the struggles of its people.
Neruda’s return to Chile in 1952 marked a new phase in his life, balancing political activity with a prolific literary output. He remained a staunch supporter of socialist ideals and later developed a close relationship with Salvador Allende, who appointed him as Chile’s ambassador to France in 1970. The following year, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, recognized for the scope and impact of his poetry. His later years were marked by illness, and he died in 1973, just days after the military coup that overthrew Allende. His legacy endures, not only in his vast body of work but also in his influence on literature, political thought, and the cultural identity of Latin America.
Neruda’s career took him beyond literature into diplomacy, a path that allowed him to travel extensively and engage with political movements around the world. Beginning in 1927, he served in various consular posts in Asia and later in Spain, where he witnessed the Spanish Civil War and became an outspoken advocate for the Republican cause. His experiences led him to embrace communism, a commitment that would shape much of his later poetry and political activism. His collection España en el corazón (Spain in Our Hearts, 1937) reflected his deep sorrow over the war and marked a shift toward politically engaged writing.
Returning to Chile, he was elected to the Senate in 1945 as a member of the Communist Party. However, his vocal opposition to the repressive policies of President Gabriel Gonzalez Videla led to his exile. During this period, he traveled through various countries, including Argentina, Mexico, and the Soviet Union, further cementing his status as a global literary and political figure. It was during these years that he wrote Canto General (1950), an epic work chronicling Latin American history and the struggles of its people.
Neruda’s return to Chile in 1952 marked a new phase in his life, balancing political activity with a prolific literary output. He remained a staunch supporter of socialist ideals and later developed a close relationship with Salvador Allende, who appointed him as Chile’s ambassador to France in 1970. The following year, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, recognized for the scope and impact of his poetry. His later years were marked by illness, and he died in 1973, just days after the military coup that overthrew Allende. His legacy endures, not only in his vast body of work but also in his influence on literature, political thought, and the cultural identity of Latin America.
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
June 26, 2013
The first GOOD translation into English I see for Pablo Neruda. I have been in two of his houses in Chile (both of them museums nowadays) and felt very impressed, as the air was heavy and dated. I strongly recommend it to all sensitive souls!
July 31, 2011
I am a huge poetry fan, and Pablo Neruda is one of my favorites. His verses are creative and thought provoking. His love poetry makes me smile and cry.... all at once.
September 12, 2018
Neruda’s poetry ranks among the best of any language, achieving the curious feat of nailing universal themes in the head without sacrificing Chilean quirkiness. The organization of this volume into Absence, Remembrance, and Presence packs an emotional wallop, as we come to know the man first only through the shadows and residues left on his bizarre collections (“vivieron media vida conmigo, y morirán media muerte...”), then we feel the intensity of his loss through the recollections of his friends, and ultimately see him resurrected, in full glory as he wanders about his labyrinthine homes.
The photography is gorgeous, grainy black and white. It may inspire you to go out and try to see your own world with the eyes of a latter-day Adam, much as Neruda did.
The photography is gorgeous, grainy black and white. It may inspire you to go out and try to see your own world with the eyes of a latter-day Adam, much as Neruda did.
July 27, 2015
I speak and read Spanish quite well but have to admit to not having really got into Pablo Neruda's poetry which is often given to language learners because of it is relative simplicity in terms of structure and vocabulary. I liked the focus of this book which takes Neruda's familiar environments (eg. his home on Isla Negra) and links photos and simple anecdotes to poetry excerpts. I loved the sonnet "If I die survive me with such sheer force..", such a life affirming work
If I die, survive me with such sheer force
that you waken the furies of the pallid and the cold,
from south to south lift your indelible eyes,
from sun to sun dream through your singing mouth.
I don’t want your laughter or your steps to waver,
I don’t want my heritage of joy to die.
Don’t call up my person. I am absent.
Live in my absence as if in a house.
Absence is a house so vast
that inside you will pass through its walls
and hang pictures on the air
Absence is a house so transparent
that I, lifeless, will see you, living,
and if you suffer, my love, I will die again.
— Sonnet XCIV by Pablo Neruda
This led me to look up other Sonnets which I think are remarkable (and very well translated from the Spanish).
When I die, I want your hands on my eyes:
I want the light and the wheat of your beloved hands
to pass their freshness over me once more:
I want to feel the softness that changed my destiny.
I want you to live while I wait for you, asleep.
I want your ears still to hear the wind, I want you
to sniff the sea’s aroma that we loved together,
to continue to walk on the sand we walk on.
I want what I love to continue to live,
and you whom I love and sang above everything else
to continue to flourish, full-flowered:
so that you can reach everything my love directs you to,
so that my shadow can travel along in your hair,
so that everything can learn the reason for my song.
— Love Sonnet LXXXIX
The book helped me with this rediscovery of sorts and for that I'm grateful
If I die, survive me with such sheer force
that you waken the furies of the pallid and the cold,
from south to south lift your indelible eyes,
from sun to sun dream through your singing mouth.
I don’t want your laughter or your steps to waver,
I don’t want my heritage of joy to die.
Don’t call up my person. I am absent.
Live in my absence as if in a house.
Absence is a house so vast
that inside you will pass through its walls
and hang pictures on the air
Absence is a house so transparent
that I, lifeless, will see you, living,
and if you suffer, my love, I will die again.
— Sonnet XCIV by Pablo Neruda
This led me to look up other Sonnets which I think are remarkable (and very well translated from the Spanish).
When I die, I want your hands on my eyes:
I want the light and the wheat of your beloved hands
to pass their freshness over me once more:
I want to feel the softness that changed my destiny.
I want you to live while I wait for you, asleep.
I want your ears still to hear the wind, I want you
to sniff the sea’s aroma that we loved together,
to continue to walk on the sand we walk on.
I want what I love to continue to live,
and you whom I love and sang above everything else
to continue to flourish, full-flowered:
so that you can reach everything my love directs you to,
so that my shadow can travel along in your hair,
so that everything can learn the reason for my song.
— Love Sonnet LXXXIX
The book helped me with this rediscovery of sorts and for that I'm grateful
April 9, 2020
This is one of my favorite books, and I recently re-read it. The black and white photos of Neruda's home on the coast of Spain, with his collection of wooden figureheads from the front of ships and other naval paraphenalia are gorgeous. The poetry, of course, is beautiful. I can't recommend it enough.
May 30, 2010
I'm a sucker for anything Neruda. That said, this is a great portrait and tribute to a man known as the people's poet. It interweaves his poetry with stories by those who knew him or met him even briefly and with photographs of the man, his favorite things, his houses and the storytellers. It is beautiful aesthetically as well as emotionally.
June 29, 2007
I love the pictures. They provide a precious glimpse of a genuine life. Would be a five, except I wish that it included longer poems -- not just portions.
January 14, 2020
My favourite one from this collection is the one Neruda wrote for Tajan:
"
SI MUERO sobrevíveme con tanta fuerza pura
que despiertes la furia del pálido y del frío,
de sur a sur levanta tus ojos indelebles,
de sol a sol que suene tu boca de guitarra.
No quiero que vacilen tu risa ni tus pasos,
no quiero que se muera mi herencia de alegría,
no llames a mi pecho, estoy ausente.
Vive en mi ausencia como en una casa.
Es una casa tan grande la ausencia
que pasarás en ella a través de los muros
y colgarás los cuadros en el aire.
Es una casa tan transparente la ausencia
que yo sin vida te veré vivir
y si sufres, mi amor, me moriré otra vez.
"
English translation is as follows:
"
If I die, survive me with such sheer force
that you waken the furies of the pallid and the cold,
from south to south lift your indelible eyes,
from sun to sun dream through your singing mouth.
I don’t want your laughter or your steps to waver,
I don’t want my heritage of joy to die.
Don’t call up my person. I am absent.
Live in my absence as if in a house.
Absence is a house so vast
that inside you will pass through its walls
and hang pictures on the air
Absence is a house so transparent
that I, lifeless, will see you, living,
and if you suffer, my love, I will die again.
"
"
SI MUERO sobrevíveme con tanta fuerza pura
que despiertes la furia del pálido y del frío,
de sur a sur levanta tus ojos indelebles,
de sol a sol que suene tu boca de guitarra.
No quiero que vacilen tu risa ni tus pasos,
no quiero que se muera mi herencia de alegría,
no llames a mi pecho, estoy ausente.
Vive en mi ausencia como en una casa.
Es una casa tan grande la ausencia
que pasarás en ella a través de los muros
y colgarás los cuadros en el aire.
Es una casa tan transparente la ausencia
que yo sin vida te veré vivir
y si sufres, mi amor, me moriré otra vez.
"
English translation is as follows:
"
If I die, survive me with such sheer force
that you waken the furies of the pallid and the cold,
from south to south lift your indelible eyes,
from sun to sun dream through your singing mouth.
I don’t want your laughter or your steps to waver,
I don’t want my heritage of joy to die.
Don’t call up my person. I am absent.
Live in my absence as if in a house.
Absence is a house so vast
that inside you will pass through its walls
and hang pictures on the air
Absence is a house so transparent
that I, lifeless, will see you, living,
and if you suffer, my love, I will die again.
"
September 27, 2025
I haven't read much poetry, but I enjoyed this. I liked the pairing of photographs. The blurbs from different people about Neruda were okay and helped contextualize him for me, but weren't as enjoyable to read. A couple of Neruda's poems hit quite hard and many more were pleasant, but did not strike me.
April 20, 2008
It was a real easy read and great introduction to the lifestyle of the poet. I wasn't aware of him but now I want to read so much more of him. Lots of photographs of his home and testimonies from his friends with his poetry all mixed in.
October 13, 2009
This book is such a beautiful introduction to a great poet and the impact of his writing and life.
I wish it included more of his poetry though! I love the letters written by all of his friends and the pictures provide an intimate glimpse into an incredibly life.
I wish it included more of his poetry though! I love the letters written by all of his friends and the pictures provide an intimate glimpse into an incredibly life.
August 14, 2007
A book full of stirring pictures, warm stories and beautiful poetry by and about the poet Pablo Neruda.
July 26, 2007
beautiful . . . enough said.
December 31, 2007
This, for me, is the perfect book. The melding of fragments and photographs, the sepia mood.
September 18, 2008
This is probably my favorite and most treasured book of Pablo Neruda. This is the book that introduced me to this amazing poet. Found on the book shelf at Half Price Books many, many years ago.
July 10, 2009
eerie, like mists across the ocean then suddenly brilliant and solid forms appear, as if they were always just so…
September 16, 2009
These pictures along with Poetry about his Residence are timeless!
May 31, 2010
This is a must for all Neruda enthusiasts. It offers insight into his world; photos of his homes couples with his own quotes and explanations from friends and his wife. This book is a treasure!
March 12, 2011
This book includes not only some of my favorite poems by Neruda but also comments by, and photos of him with,some of his Chilean friends.
August 18, 2012
as i loved his quite erotically charged love poems...he inspires to write,,
i can see the colour of hope ,,as he wrote in green :)
i can see the colour of hope ,,as he wrote in green :)
November 2, 2013
This is some of my favorite poetry. Neruda was a gifted poet, and I can't wait to read more of his work!
November 15, 2013
a lovely collection of photographs, poetry in both english and spanish, and remembrances. a celebration of neruda.
December 15, 2014
My first real reading of Pablo Neruda and I am impressed, liked the poems,liked the memories from the other interviewees, adding more Neruda to my read list
February 21, 2016
wonderful combination of Neruda's words and images of his homes. Loved the section of reminiscing by his friends
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews