A Season in Hell & The Drunken Boat Audiobook By Arthur Rimbaud cover art

A Season in Hell & The Drunken Boat

English and French Edition

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A Season in Hell & The Drunken Boat

By: Arthur Rimbaud
Narrated by: Michael C. Gwynne
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This is a reissue of Rimbaud’s highly influential work with a new preface by Patti Smith and the original 1945 New Directions cover design by Alvin Lustig.

New Directions is pleased to announce the relaunch of the long-celebrated bilingual edition of Rimbaud’s A Season in Hell & The Drunken Boat, a personal poem of damnation, as well as, a plea to be released from “the examination of his own depths”.

Rimbaud originally distributed A Season in Hell to friends as a self-published booklet, and soon afterward, at the age of 19, quit poetry altogether. This edition was among the first to be published in the US, and quickly became a classic, and Rimbaud’s famous poem “The Drunken Boat” was subsequently added. Allen Ginsberg proclaimed Arthur Rimbaud as “the first punk”, a visionary mentor to the Beats for both his recklessness and his fiery poetry.

This new edition proudly dons the original Alvin Lustig-designed cover, and an introduction by another famous rebel, and now National Book Award winner, Patti Smith.

©2011 New Directions (P)2018 TalkingBook Classics European Poetry World Literature French Poetry

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Still wild, reckless, and debauched after 150 years, the enfant terrible of poetry delivers verse that pleases the dark side.

"Let's hear now a hell-mate's confession"

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Arthur Rimbaud's poems are excellently presented, translated from the French into English, and then so amazingly recited. Powerful. A confession, a love, a heart-rent, a man in turmoil within himself, a forbidden love, an outcast, misunderstood and unfairly judged, amid a time and culture unforgiving and cruel. What a masterpiece.

a Heavenly rendition of "Hell"

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Fabulous visions of a very angry young man. Even in translation the words flow with the rhythm of the sea and wash over the reader evoking powerful emotions. Very rewarding read for angry times.

Definitely worth a re-read.

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Sometimes the reading is not so great even though the story is interesting and the book is well written. This, however, was a beautiful reading, I really enjoyed the speaker’s voice. And I learned how to pronounce Rimbaud (the d is silent). I just finished reading a biography of Rimbaud by Graham Robb which helped me to appreciate this reading of Rimbaud on Audible. As a Doors fan, I finally see the influence of Rimbaud on Jim Morrison, in his lyrics.

Great all around

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I really enjoyed this. while the first part of the book was a little disturbing. It only got better as the audio book progressed. it is definitely worth a listen.

Better than I thought!

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Rimbaud was 19 when he wrote Season in Hell. The dynamics of that production at that age are lost in the highly enunciated and oddly varied baritone of the narrator making paying full attention to the fine translation an unpleasant effort for this listener.

Narration-story disconnect

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The issue with poetry is how you read it. This reader was involved, but in a moderate way, so that he doesn’t steal the focus from the verse.

Good read

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Five stars for recording Louise Varese's translation of these poems. I read Rimbaud when I was young, and have revisited these works over the years. Great to hear them read.

Four stars for advertising a bilingual edition (the print edition probably includes both, as my old paperback does). This recording has no French version - bummer!

The reader does a fine job - but he sounds like an older guy (I can relate!). Rimbaud wrote these poems around age 20 - they should be read by a younger voice.

That said - these are great translations of Rimbaud's most famous works. Five stars for that.

English Version Great - French Missing

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