The Cubist Poets in Paris: An Anthology

In this exciting, bilingual anthology Breunig (Apollinaire on Art) offers selections from ``the dozen or so French poets who surrounded Picasso and his circle in Paris on the eve of and during the First World War''--from the well-known Guillaume Apollinaire and Blaise Cendrars to lesser appreciated talents such as Sonia Delaunay and Max Jacob. All worked closely with Picasso and Gris, defending the new cubist style, providing text for illustrations and borrowing--sometimes exchanging--techniques. French and English versions of the poems are presented on facing pages; illustrations demonstrate painter/poet collaborations. Breunig's introduction and bio-crit essays on featured poets are detailed and informative. Best is the opportunity to see the vitality of the Cubist poetic tradition: the playful ``visual poetry'' of Pierre Albert-Birot, words shaped self-reflectively on the page; the range and depth of Apollinaire; the deceptive simplicity of Pierre Reverdy, ``cubist poet par excellence.'' Photos. (May)