Wounds of the Old Trees: Iraqi Poems - Paperback

Since The Song of the Rhinoceros (1973) till his recent collections of poems entitled Wounds of the Old Trees (2011), the Iraqi poet Sadiq Assaieg proves to be a poet of vision, passion and sensation. For him, poetry is no more an act of inspiration, but it is a complex craft to be mastered and thought of. His poetry, since the sixties of the last century represents a sharp departure from classical and romantic traditions in Arabic poetry and shows a real affinity to modernity. His poetic language is rich with imagery, masks and mythology. He always shocks his reader and contradicts their horizon of expectation and urges them to share the poetic experience actively to negotiate the innate meaning of his poetic vision. His poetry is motivated by the pulse of time and inner insight of life. Experimentation, suspicions, rebellion and rejecting poetic and social conventions are but some of the targets and motifs of his poetry.