As I Said

These poems are written from across the poet's life, contemplating his native land of Russia from both a literal and a figurative distance, while at the same time casting a sometimes jaundiced eye on the alien culture of America in which he spent the final years of his life. Loseff's poetry excels in complex imagery and rich literary allusion.

Series Editor's note / 9 Translator's preface / 10 Introduction / 16 At the clinic / 25 The Talking Parrot The Flat / 27 An Excursion / 27 Kazan, July 1957 / 29 School No. 1 / 31 'Who Says Sheep are Different from Goats?' / 31 Joseph in 1965 / 33 Russian Depression / 35 In the Empty Room / 37 As I Said The Blood washed off - ' / 39 The New Abode / 39 Grounded Again / 43 In Memory of a Polar Explorer / 43 The See-through House / 45 The Funeral Parlour's abuzz / 45 S. D. / 47 Out of Bunin / 49 Fragment / 49 The Pier that disappeared / 51 'As you get on - ' / 53 'This city's alive, - ' / 55 Right Now / 55 June 1972 / 59 Dostoevsky's Handwriting / 61 The Reformer / 61 Afterword Afterword / 65 In Memory of Mikhail Krasilnikov / 79 'Me and the Old Lady' / 81 Heartbeat / 83 New Information concerning Carl and Clara Not / 83 Untitled / 85 Old Testament Autumn / 87 For O's Scrapbook / 87 Forgotten Villages / 89 Gentrification / 91 The Parisian Note / 93 Imitation / 95 Only Just / 95 Privy Councillor April 1950 / 101 Toilette / 101 Ledger Entry / 103 'December Dreams come 'in a Crazy Rush' / 105 Awakened by an Unexpected Silence' / 107 The Miraculous Raid Pronouns / 109 The Tram / 111 'I'm living in the States from boredom' / 113 'The splendid thing about these dreams' / 115 'Having traversed half my three score and ten' / 117 Sonnet / 121 The Extended Day - / 123 Grounded / 137 The Last Romance / 141 ' "And this one here is basil", he declared' / 143 Author's & Translator's Notes / 144 Biographical Notes / 151