In this first-ever bilingual edition of "Voices from the Bitter Core," acclaimed German poet Ursula Krechel traces the devastating repercussions of violence and warfare, from the battles of
Ancient Greece to the trenches of World War I and the invasions of our current century. Krechel employs a collage technique that blends ancient and modern in an inventive and astute way, mixing
quotes taken from military instruction manuals and codes of conduct with the imagined perspectives of historical figures such as Byron and Philoctetes and the anonymous voices of soldiers and
civilians. The arbitrariness of violence is juxtaposed with the strikingly rigorous form, with each of the twelve chapters consisting of twelve twelve-line poems. Behind this multiplicity of
speakers and techniques, the reader hears a lyrical and monumental voice that distills the essence of war. "Voices from the Bitter Core" is a profound and lasting memorial to the wages of human
brutality.
