The Zoo In Winter
Selected Poems
Polina Barskova
Translated by Boris Dralyuk and David Stromberg
“Lavishly mordant, magically bitter, erotically sardonic.” —Alicia Ostriker
Opulent, playful, and sensual, Polina Barskova’s poems have earned her a reputation as the finest Russian poet under forty. While steeped in Russian and classical culture, Barskova’s work remains unmistakably contemporary, at once classic and edgy – always fresh, new and even startling. A major English-language event, this volume collects poems from seven earlier books as well as from her recent work, all previously untranslated into English. The Zoo In Winteris a remarkable menagerie of poems, of a strange and intoxicating beauty.
POLINA BARSKOVA, born in 1976, is widely regarded as the most important Russian poet of her generation. Her first book of poems was published when she was still a teenager. After receiving a degree in Russian Literature and Classics from St. Petersburg University, she came to the US where she earned a Ph.D. in Russian Literature from UC Berkeley. Author of seven books of poetry, this is her first collection in English. Barskova teaches as Hampshire College.
