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If Not, Winter: Fragments of Sappho
If Not, Winter: Fragments of Sappho | Sappho
By combining the ancient mysteries of Sappho with the contemporary wizardry of one of our most fearless and original poets, If Not, Winter provides a tantalizing window onto the genius of a woman whose lyric power spans millennia. Of the nine books of lyrics the ancient Greek poet Sappho is said to have composed, only one poem has survived complete. The rest are fragments. In this miraculous new translation, acclaimed poet and classicist Anne Carson presents all of Sappho's fragments, in Greek and in English, as if on the ragged scraps of papyrus that preserve them, inviting a thrill of discovery and conjecture that can be described only as electric--or, to use Sappho's words, as "thin fire . . . racing under skin." "Sappho's verse has been elevated to new heights in [this] gorgeous translation." --The New York Times"Carson is in many ways [Sappho's] ideal translator....Her command of language is hones to a perfect edge and her approach to the text, respectful yet imaginative, results in verse that lets Sappho shine forth." --Los Angeles Times
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rwmg
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Mehso-so

A bilingual edition (Greek on the left-hand page, English on the right) of the complete surviving poetry of Sappho, some from papyri and some from quotations by other authors of a line or even just a word. TBH, I didn't find any of it particularly memorable but it was interesting to see just how fragmentary fragments are.

dabbe I want your drink. 🤩 11mo
rwmg @dabbe Terry's Orange milkshake 11mo
dabbe @rwmg Yum! 🤩 11mo
30 likes3 comments
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hissingpotatoes
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Pickpick

4/5⭐ I love that the book includes the facing Greek. The translations are more on the side of faithfully following the literal Greek; while this makes for more awkward-sounding poetry, I really appreciate the accuracy. I read this alongside Rayor's 2023 translation, & it's very interesting to see how they filled in blanks & translated words differently. The commentary on each fragment is great. The two editions necessarily supplemented each other.

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BookmarkTavern
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Thanks for the tag @TheSpineView ! 💖

1. The tagged book! I love Anne Carson‘s translations.
2. I‘m good to go until the books start making me more frustrated than I am invested! Which could be book 2, or could be book 19. 😂
3. I will forever mourn the Discworld books we will never see. ❤️

#WondrousWednesday @Eggs

Marmie7 I also mourn the fact we will never have another Terry Pratchett book.💙 I'm actually reading Unseen Academicals right now. 2y
TheSpineView You're welcome! 2y
Eggs He was one-of-a-kind😔 2y
54 likes3 comments
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GatheringBooks
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IndoorDame Love her!!! 2y
TheSpineView 😍😍😍 2y
38 likes2 comments
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IndoorDame
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Pickpick

I can‘t think of a better translator for Sappho than Anne Carson! She captures the beauty that the poet is so famed for, and the musicality that has been completely lost to time. Even some of the fragments where only a word or two survive are captivating and evocative.

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Emilymdxn
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Pickpick

I loved this book which combined the genius of Sappho with the genius of Anne Carson. I‘ve read Sappho before but I found this liberal translation really evocative and interesting. I liked how she leaned into the fragmentary and part-lost nature of the poems, even the amount of white space on the pages makes you feel you‘re reading a tiny part of something much bigger.

#wingergames2021 #mistletoemaniacs @Clwojick +16

rwmg Wishlisted 3y
65 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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Emilymdxn
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Look at this gorgeous edition of if not winter that I picked up from gays the word this weekend! I feel like I‘ve seen so many beautiful extracts and quotes pulled out of this book I‘m very excited to read it all the way through

Tamra Beautiful! 3y
Gissy The book is beautiful and the coffee ☕️ looks delicious☺️ 3y
71 likes2 comments
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Rehesina
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Pickpick

Reading this felt like a spiritual experience at times. Sappho is breathlessly achingly beautiful.

(You will have lost out if you don't read the notes at the end)

batsy Ooh! I need this 🙂 4y
15 likes1 comment
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Rehesina
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If you read extract 31 with the notes from extract 165 the first line changes to:
"that man seems to himself equal to gods"

And what a change that made to the whole scene in my head.

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Rehesina
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Rehesina
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Rehesina
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Decided to add Sappho to my current rotation

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BookmarkTavern
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Thanks for the tag @Eggs !

1. I don‘t think so? I should have. I wrote some though.
2. My favorite books of poetry right now are a collection of Sappho fragments (tagged) and Christopher Poindexter‘s Naked Human. So, I‘m pretty open when it comes to poetry. 😁

#two4Tuesday @TheSpineView

Eggs You‘re most welcome 🙏🏻 5y
TheSpineView That's fabulous that you wrote some poetry. Thanks for playing! 🤩 5y
45 likes2 comments
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Limonotte
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There is something endlessly intriguing about a fragment of a poem, devoid of context but applicable to so many things.

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2B-or-not-2B
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Pickpick

absolutely breathtaking. anne carson‘s translations are like sucking in sharp cold winter (forgive my theatrical poetics). i own the hardcover edition where the greek is in blood red text on the left against the black of the english and it may be the most beautiful book i own. i adore it

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GatheringBooks
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#QuotsyMarch18 Day 16: There is a sense of #Defeat in this fragment, wings folded, hearts chilled into indifference.

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parasolofdoom
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A few pretty lines but on the whole, I don't believe I am intellectual enough to appreciate a book mostly made up of literal fragments

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cephareads
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cephareads
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Eros is my last name!

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cephareads
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cephareads
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cephareads
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cephareads
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morevna
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morevna
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Can't we all relate to this?

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Andrea4
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Yes indeed the hours and seasons pass by and yet here we all still lie.

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Andrea4
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Pickpick

A proverb about those unwilling to take the good with the bad.
I love Carson's translations-they are what I aspire to when polishing translations. Though it is lines such as this when it becomes glaringly obvious something is always lost in translation.

llwheeler This is making me want to work on translations again. Not just for the sake of having read, but for the interaction and the product. 8y
Andrea4 It's so much better when you can take your time to read it and think about it rather than just pushing through for practice and to get through the "story." 8y
3 likes2 comments
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Andrea4
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"You take your fill"
And yet she leaves me wanting more.

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Lindy
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"And a pasture for horses blossoms
With the flowers of spring, and breezes
Are flowing here like honey:
Come to me here." - Sappho

(The first flower has opened in my garden. My beloved dog is dying. I need poetry.)

Riveted_Reader_Melissa Awww... so sorry! 8y
DivineDiana I am sorry to learn this. Experiencing a similar situation with our beloved bunny who can no longer stand. I am listening to Lily and the Octopus and it is comforting to hear the love expressed for a an animal friend. ❤️️ 8y
See All 19 Comments
Lindy @DivineDiana It's hard, isn't it? I was comforted by Lily and the Octopus. 8y
saresmoore Oh, I'm so sorry. I'm praying for peace and comfort for you both. 💞 8y
Lindy @saresmoore Thank you. 8y
Eyelit I'm sorry to hear about your dog! All the love your way! 💚 8y
Lindy @Eyelit Thank you. 8y
DivineDiana @Lindy Yes, it is. ❤️️ 8y
shawnmooney Oh no! Sending you a big hug from Tokyo! ❤❤❤😍😍😍😥😥😥 8y
Lindy @shawnmooney Thank you. I feel the love from you and other Littens. 8y
GypsyKat Oh no, I'm sorry to hear about your dog! 💔 8y
Lindy @GypsyKat Thank you. 8y
LeahBergen Oh, I'm so sorry! 💗💗 8y
Lindy @LeahBergen Thank you. 8y
JessClark78 So sorry to hear about your dog. 💔🌹 8y
Lindy @JessClark78 Thank you. She's 115 in dog years; it's been a long life. 8y
Dragon Yay, spring at last! 🌺🌸but so sorry to hear about your dog. Take care of yourself 🙏 (edited) 8y
Lindy @Dragon Thank you! 8y
48 likes1 stack add19 comments
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MCYmermaid
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Following Sappho Bot is one of my greatest Twitter pleasures.

cariashley Holy crap this is amazing. 8y
29 likes1 comment
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BookmarkTavern
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"For the man who is beautiful is beautiful to see
but the good man will at once also beautiful be."

#poetry #seasonsreadings2016 @RealLifeReading

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Lindy
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Love shook my heart
Like the wind on the mountain
rushing over the oak trees.

-Sappho

Lindy I've been walking for two days now, mostly through cork oaks, in southwest Portugal. 8y
Riveted_Reader_Melissa @Lindy looks beautiful! 8y
Lindy @Riveted_Reader_Melissa Yes it is. Hardly any time for reading and only occasional wifi access. I'm embracing the unplugged-ness. 😊 8y
Riveted_Reader_Melissa @Lindy It's a wonderful thing! 8y
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Lindy
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someone will remember us
I say
even in another time

-Sappho

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Lylah
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And we did.

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Lylah
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This just came in the mail and I could not be happier. 😍

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darynne
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This book is the whole of my heart.

sistercity Have had this on my to-read list at the library since 2012, and I finally put it on hold so that I will just read it already. 💕 8y
sistercity Still thinking about this book, which I finally read recently, and so grateful to have been led back to it by your heart. 8y
darynne @sistercity 💖💖💖 8y
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Lindy
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you will remember
for we in our youth
did these things
yes many and beautiful things

shawnmooney I'm a book reader who doesn't get or enjoy poetry as a general rule, but Anne Carson is one of my two fabulous exceptions! (Mark Doty is the other.) 9y
Lindy @shawnmooney Have you tried Mary Oliver? You might also like Michael Crummey's Under the Keel. 9y
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triskeleseeker
Pickpick

I am not really a poetry person but for some reason I am really fascinated by Sappho. If you are too, get this book - it's got everything we know of from her, and some background context. Beautiful.

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Uranaishi
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Eros shook my
mind like a mountain wind falling on oak trees

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Uranaishi
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Pickpick

I picked this up years ago while visiting Portland/Powells - being a bookish queer feminist, I knew I should know Sappho more intimately. I'm so glad this is the book I picked. Turns out, most translators take it upon themselves to fill in gaps. Here is 100% Sappho, all beauty & lost brilliance.

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aoife
Pickpick

Absolutely gorgeous. One of my favourites.

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strandbookstore
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Pickpick

The poems in this swoon-worthy collection are all glimpses of Sappho's genius and the world that she lived in. They're like little chips off a beautiful diamond. Anne Carson translate the poems so clearly-- she'll make you want to rip your heart out!

read.drink.repeat One of my favorites- kills me every time. 9y
17 likes3 stack adds1 comment