Barbarian in the Garden - Zbigniew Herbert

The garden of this book is Italy and France, those places dear to the heart of every poet, writer and cultural snob from the parochial fringes of Europe. The barbarian of the title is a young Polish poet, Zbigniew Herbert. Be careful, though. The garden is not exactly a Paradise and the barbarian comes across as more erudite and understanding than a lot of The Garden`s inhabitants might be. Herbert is known for his subtle and not so subtle irony and this book is also somehow affected. Zbigniew Herbert is one of the foremost Polish modern poets, and, due to clarity and (deceitful!) transparency of his language, his poetry yields well to translation and is thus ...  Read the complete review