The Book of Images: Poems / Revised Bilingual Edition (English and German Edition)

This is my favorite translation of The Book of Images that I have found, and I appreciate that it sets the poems side by side with the originals - German on the left, English translation on the right. I also appreciate that even when the original poem rhymes, the translation sticks as close to the true meaning as possible and does not rhyme.For those that fit into the category of "knows some German, but not fluent," books like this are a great fit. Rilke's poetry often has a wonderful rhythm and rhyme scheme, but can be very hard to grasp the meaning of even in one's native language. So with this I can read it aloud and hear how the poem was meant to sound, but also see a direct translation of it so I'm not trying in vain to understand.

Any reader (or writer) of translation work knows the inherent difficulties--translation is often something like palimpsest or erasure, the voice of the translator becoming too loud or possibly too literal. There is no such thing as a one to one ratio in translation. What Snow's recent work with Book of Images (and I recommend his other Rilke translations, Sonnets to Orpheus, Duino Elegies) demonstrates is a labor of love: it is almost as if he has acquired Cocteau's radio from Orphée and used it to channel Rilke; I simply have not come across any more appealing translations of Rilke than his. The bilingual edition is important, and I wish all translations would do this (though I understand it can be expensive): the en face provides one the original text as well as the translated, so there exists not only a visual representation of the poetic object, but also enables anyone with a bit of knowledge of the foreign language a way in.This is a beautiful work.

I love the dual translation books in general, and found this to be a thoughtful, well-considered English translation of the original. It's amazing to see Rilke's wonderfully simple yet incredibly evocative command of the German language. Some passages feel almost untranslatable to English, not because of the vocabulary per se, but the difficulty in capturing the subtlety, causing me to reflect on the differences between the two languages.Highly recommended, especially for those simultaneously wishing to take their language skills to a higher level.

A good book to read especially when travelling. You can connect and disconnect easily. It stimulates your visual imagination and imaginative thinking at the same time.

I got this bilingual edition, and it is very helpful to read both versions of each poem. The poet's language in German is beautiful, rich and melodic when read aloud, and I get to practice my German at the same time I am reading these wonderful poems. Happy with the translation.

Wonderful translations of beautiful poems.

The book was as described. Got here quickly. Overall pleased

Rilke rocks

beautiful timeless poetry

Not a very successful translation from the German. Really takes the poise and brilliance from Rilke's poems when read in English. Would not recommend this translation.

Beautiful translation

It’s the first work of Rilke’s that I’ve read, having previously only read a few bits and pieces of his work. The introductory essay is pretty informative, both about Rilke and The Book of Images. Knowing very little about either, I found it helpful.The title – Book of Images – is a very apt description of the contents. The poems do seem to bring to mind many images. Take your time reading them, and let them sink into your mind and enjoy. Verbal ballet. Worth rereading at least once. I gave it a few months between readings and nit almost seemed like reading something new, or appreciating elements of it that seem new. Noticing something about a particular passage that you hadn’t noticed before, or didn’t appreciate fully. And rather than cause boredom, rereading brought a deeper appreciation of Rilke’s writing.Having a dual language version (even though I don’t understand very much German) – I just like being able to look at the original, even if I can’t understand it – to get a sense of the rhythm of the original.Maybe the best thing I can say about this book (and translation) is that it made me want to read more of Rilke’s work.

Amazing quality... however, they messed up the placement of one single page... going from page 13 to page 68...