Poetry With A Strong Imagination – Review

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Ihor Pavliouk, a distinguished writer and global poet, in his choice of poems, published in French with the title “Magma polésien”, meaning in English “Polesian Magma”, has enabled and shown to many readers the author’s sentiment to the world, which is a great piece of art.

In fact, the writer is a special gift from nature, but to me reading Pavliouk’s verses is also a kind of art, because it tries to go deep inside the imagination of the author. This bright Ukrainian author is a writer who measures everything in his verses and obviously thinks three times; to give the possibility to himself to craft special verses.

Pavliouk’s poems are translated from Ukrainian to French by Thanase Vantchev de Thracy and Dmytro Tchystiak, both are excellent translators who have emboldened this distinguished Ukrainian writer to express his life story in a country like France, where literature is at the apex of a multifaceted cultural lifestyle.

When I read Pavliouk’s translated verses, I have the impression that I am reading a poetry volume written in its original language. Moreover, reading the verses of “Polesian Magma” of Mr. Pavliouk, it is clear that as a distinguished Ukrainian poet, he comes from a region and writes only about local subjects, but is easily recognizable that his imagination is determinant, well-articulated and certainly shaped by an elevated standard of writing. Over the years, Mr. Pavliouk has shown through his verses that Ukrainian literature has advanced tremendously while embracing a centuries old poetry tradition that emerged in western Europe.

Furthermore, Mr. Pavliouk is not even a national writer, his works of poetry – promoted by the two stellar translators – Thanase Vantchev de Thracy and Dmytro Tchystiak – has reached an admirable reputation at the international stage and is great figure with whom the nation of Ukraine can feel represented and be proud.

On the other hand, Mr. Pavliouk continues to engage his imagination and play with the figures, characters and subject matters that he designs through his verses.

At first site, his poems are modern, however the reader finds a great length of pleasure when reading them attentively, his verses are lyrical, borderless and infused with a culture of Eastern European Tradition that ought to receive more attention in the West. The substance of narrative in Mr. Ihor Pavliouk’s poetry is a model of sentiments towards opening a page in the world’s history that is dedicated to the life style, history, blunders and beauty of his country.

CHRIST

Underground a windy tunnel smell,
Looks like condemned suls will fly forever.
Christ came as he briefly passed in the desert
They have not crucified him,
They laughed at him,
Now they sit
And eat.

In general, Mr. Pavliouk’s poetry is something exceptional, but he writes modern poetry and the way on how to integrate his conscience within his verses is really magnificent, a style that overrules the standards of communication and it becomes a great form of art. As they used to say in ancient Greece, to write poetry is a gift from God, but to read poetry – I mean to read it deeply – should also be a kind of art.

As a passionate reader of Poetry, I have read two times the verses of Ukrainian modern poet Ihor Pavliouk and I saw that in my second round of reading, many new elements appeared and convinced me that his world of writing is unique, thrilling and engaging. What do I mean? To me Mr. Pavliouk’s poetry has given me the pleasure of reading poems of high quality, where a variety of spectrums and shadows surface every time you embark on a new reading venture of his verses. Indeed, you clearly see a national culture and a sophisticated literary tradition that embodies Mr. Pavliouk’s art of writing and his vision on how to shape the future of literature.

It is not my objective to analyse, in a specific way, any book of poetry, I am not an expert on literary critic; however, as a professional writer and a slow reader who loves poetry, I am confident that Mr. Pavliouk’s verses are top notch. Themes unravelled in his poetry are wide and large, but this doesn’t mean scarifying that superior quality that he cherishes.

There is a lengthy experience reflected in his verses and it is truly a delight to immerse on this book of poetry. Generally, I have had the opportunity to read a number of Ukrainian poets and I love Ukrainian modern poetry, but Mr. Pavliouk is a great poet and it is magnificent to know that his verses can be read in popular languages like this volume in French. On this occasion, I would like to congratulate the two translators: Mr. de Thracy and Mr. Tchystiak, who have introduced to the world a well-respected writer of Ukraine.

It would be a great contribution to have Mr. Pavliouk’s book to be published in other major languages, for the world to became of aware of Ukraine and its impressive culture and modern literature actors.

To conclude, I am thrilled to have been introduced to Mr. Pavliouk’s poems and am hopeful to translate very soon his poems in Albanian language, and offer my countrymen a taste of Ukrainian modern verses.

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