Moonlight by the Tamarisk (ENG)

Blending tenderness and intimacy, the poems in Hana Karolina Kobulejová’s Moonlight by the Tamarisk are both innocently playful and ingeniously seductive. The main symbol for the collection is the tamarisk, an eternal tree whose bark is believed to be the source of the biblical heavenly manna. However, its purpose is not just ornamental. It also serves to nourish, boasting a system of deep roots that help strengthen the banks of rivers and sand dunes. Descriptions of this kind of solid resilience are characteristic of almost every poem in this collection. The author seeks out forms that provide warmth, channelling energies that encourage us to lift our emotional state and spread hidden wings. Reaching down for the moisture of groundwater, the tamarisk’s roots supply the power of the spirit, but also our innate capacity to know ourselves again, to plumb our inner depths. In delicate counterpoint, the tiny leaves that form its airy crown seem to yearn for discoveries beyond, treasures of intensive emotion that can always be tapped. Marking a blessed creative beginning for the author, the esoteric unity of the tamarisk is the inspiration for this volume. Teasing out associations and betraying a discreet but engaging eroticism between the lines, the personal heart of the writer is on full courageous display. Balancing rich images with subtle confessions and piquant observations on daily life, there is something here for every reader to enjoy. Featuring accompanying black and white illustrations, this edition develops the special articulatory phonetics of the author’s exhilarating English translation of the Czech original Night by the Tamarisk, simultaneously enriched by new poems, proving that in the depths of darkness the moon will always shine. What will be revealed?

MOJE KNIHOVNY