The Faber Book of 20th Century German Poems

by Michael Hofmann

Rilke, Sachs, Brecht, German has produced some of the giants of 20th century European poetry. In this new selection, complete with many new translations, Michael Hofmann guides us through the poems, poets and themes of German verse. Meticulously researched but eminently approachable, "The Faber Book of Twentieth Century German Poems" is an essential new addition to any poetry bookshelf. "Michael Hofmann has a skeptical intelligence, an observant eye, a compulsion to speak the unspeakable, and the useful wariness of the displaced person". (Helen Vendler, "New York Review of Books"). "It is probably impossible to produce poetry of this quality that is tuned more precisely to the timbre of the present than Michael Hofmann's. Rapture is the only adequate response". (Geoff Dyer, "Guardian").

Genres: Poetry, German Literature, Germany, Anthologies

Paperback

First published September 20, 2005

About the author

Michael Hofmann is a German-born, British-educated poet and translator. He is the author of two books of essays and five books of poems, most recently One Lark, One Horse. Among his translations are plays by Bertolt Brecht and Patrick Süskind; the selected poems of Durs Grünbein and Gottfried Benn; and novels and stories by, among others, Franz Kafka; Peter Stamm; his father, Gert Hofmann; and fourteen books by Joseph Roth. He has translated several books for NYRB Classics, including Alfred Döblin’s Berlin Alexanderplatz, Jakob Wassermann’s My Marriage, and Gert Ledig’s Stalin Front, Kurt Tucholsky’s Castle Gripsholm, and edited The Voyage That Never Ends, an anthology of writing by Malcolm Lowry. He teaches in the English Department at the University of Florida.

He is the son of German novelist Gert Hofmann (1931-1993).

Reviews

[Jonfaith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Would it not be easier
In that case for the government
To dissolve the people
And elect another?

I found this anthology duly wonderful. I haven't read many anthologies and this one was littered with the best examples, so I did encounter my favorites from Brecht and Celan again but it was as an assurance and then there were a few dozen poets with whom I was unfamiliar: true to form I have bought several of their books. The survey includes a wide treatment of verse, from Rilke to sound-poetry and experimental use of font. The authors appear to be a broad sample (though understandably thin at century's end) and all the horror and suffering of the 20C appears delineated in this dual-language presentation.

[Blair · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's some brilliant poetry here (Rilke, Brecht and others) but overall I found a lot of the poems to be rather inconsequential. Editor Michael Hofmann makes big claims for German poetry in his intro but his selections don't live up to his hype. There's also some weird laying out of poems and they only provide the birth/death dates for the poets, not identifying when each poem was written/published, which is annoying.

[Joe Sacksteder · Rating 4 out of 5]

In general this is great, but it's weird that this anthology doesn't include bios, dates of publication, or any writers born after 1971. Some of the translations take great liberties with the originals, some of which are really effective—the preserving of increasingly long German phrases in John Felstiner's translation of Celan's famous "Todesfugue"—and some of which made me scratch my head—the practical joke that is Robert Lowell's translation of Franz Werfel's "Der dicke Mann im Spiegel" or Richard Dove's deletion of three lines from Michael Krüger's "Meister" because apparently he just didn't like those three lines.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brecht's Hollywood and Los Angeles poems alone are worth the cover price.

Celan, Rilke, Brecht, Enzensberger, and Inge Müller steal the show. Thankfully short on weepy, slo-mo contemporary stuff, post-sex teardrop poetry, and that awful word "Das Kleenex".

Some of the translations seemed like looney tunes compared to the German originals, but overall worth reading in both languages.

John Felstiner's entire book of Paul Celan's poetry should be your next stop from here. Struck me as the best translator in this anthology.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This anthology contains such excellent and important poetry. My only complaint could be there's too much Enzensberger, whom I appreciate but am not fond of. But even that I'm reconsidering.

[Robert Mayer · Rating 4 out of 5]

If it's possible to see poetry as a way into the soul of a nation, then this book is a potential start. The variety is quite strong -- including surprises by writers better known as dramatists and novelists. The degree of moods, ranging from the sublime to the satirical, helps the book out. For example, before one reads the stark poetry of Paul Celan, one is greeted by a morning poem by Rainier Brambach. The collection also suggests those outside of Germany should rethink the German canon. Yes, there is Celan, but Nelly Sachs' poetry of the Holocaust is just as rending. In particular, poets trying to make sense of the East-West divide of the Cold War are a crucial addition.

For each poem, an English version lies on the facing page. For the most part, translations try to stay close to the spirit of the original poem, but there are times when the translation falls far short, or is more of an impression the author is trying to make, such as Robert Lowell's interpretation of Franz Werfel. In essence, this is three books -- one for a German reader, one for an English reader, and one for a reader of both.

[Hans Otterson]

Before I sit down to write every day I read a few poems. This book has been the first thing I pick up off my writing desk for the last couple months. And it's solid! The further I got through the more I enjoyed it; though the collection is full of different poets, they build upon one another in really nice way.

Favorites: Brecht, Rilke, Hans Magnus Enzenberger (his "foam" has all the force and felt importance of a "Howl"; I'll be returning to it many times).

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sure, read through poems written by people experiencing one of the worst centuries every experienced by a people. But it was very good, enlightening. In every horror art thrives, voices fight to survive. The beautiful and the fractured seem well-represented. Here's to hopes for a much better century for Germany, which seems well on its way to stability now. But, then, that was probably the view at the end of the 19th.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Finally a collection of the amazing poets coming out of Germany during and after the war. But there are no bios and at least one of the Rilke translations is an abomination (thankfully I had a German speaking friend in the room). A good starting point for those uninitiated in contemporary German poetry (me), but I still feel betrayed.

[Marc Adler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been reading this book for a while, on and off. I don't read poetry books from the beginning to the end, so no page number updates, but what a great book. Great translations.

[hh · Rating 4 out of 5]

really 3.5 stars, i think. some real gems inside.

[Carmen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Snippets of poetry from many poets, I found some of my favorites among them. I enjoy Bertolt Brecht, Rilke, and am discovering Bierman.

[Jerin Tahapary]

What a weak form of the wonders of Weimar Classicism,
that they are weaklings in their wee world.