Letters to a Young Poet

An original translation of Rainer Maria Rilke's most famous work by acclaimed translators Anita Barrows and Joanna Macy. Originally written from 1902-1908, Letters to a Young Poet is a compilation of famous German poet Rainer Maria Rilke's (1875-1926) thoughts and reflections on the vocation of writing. The letters urge his correspondent to look inward and understand his motivations for pursuing a life devoted to the written word, looking beyond those who attempt to criticize and critique his work. His advice can be extended to all young writers. For the first time in twenty years, Anita Barrows and Joanna Macy offer a new translation of this classic work that speaks to a new generation of artists, poets, and writers. With a new introduction and commentary on each letter, this edition places Rilke's letters in the context of today's world and the unique challenges of modern writers. Barrows and Macy are the first women to translate Letters to a Young Poet and their edition offers a fresh perspective on this work.

RAINER MARIA RILKE (1875-1926) is widely regarded as one of the greatest poets of the twentieth century. His works include Duino Elegies, The Sonnets to Orpheus, and Letters to a Young Poet. ANITA BARROWS is a prize-winning poet and a clinical psychologist. She is the author of four books of her own poetry and the recipient of an NEA grant as well as the Quarterly Review of Literature's Contemporary Poetry Award. She has been a professional translator for more than thirty years. She is the translator of Rilke's Book of Hours: Love Poems to God. She was featured on Krista Tippet's On Being and writes and has taught at colleges and universities around the country. JOANNA MACY, PhD, teacher and author, is a scholar of Buddhism, systems thinking and deep ecology. As the root teacher of the Work That Reconnects, Macy has created a ground-breaking framework for personal and social change that brings a new way of seeing the world as our larger body.  Her many books include World as Lover, World as Self; Widening Circles, A Memoir; Active Hope: How to Face the Mess We’re in without Going Crazy; and Coming Back to Life: The Updated Guide to the Work That Reconnects. Macy received a BA from Wellesley College in 1950 and a PhD in Religion from Syracuse University in 1978.  She continues to write and teach in Berkeley, California, with two new books in press, including A Wild Love for the World: Joanna Macy and the Work of Our Times (ed. Stephanie Kaza). To learn more, visit www.joannamacy.net.