Welcome to Litsy!

"Irâm indeed is gone with all its Rose,
And Jamshyd's Sev'n-ring'd Cup where no one knows:
But still the Vine her ancient Ruby yields,
And still a Garden by the Water blows."
- Verse V
The introduction and notes in this edition [9780713604184] are illuminating, and got me doing something I realise I haven't done before: searching the internet for Rubaiyát references. The most interesting thing I learned was that Khayyám's mention of "Irâm" ??

A new year, so another "new" volume of Fitzgerald's Khayyám to read. This one has nice painted illustrations, though as is often the case with Rubaiyát editions, the page decorations are also attractive.
The introduction for this edition, by Reynold Alleyne Nicholson, looks rather more robust than the usual page or two of basic biographical information.

Well, two more editions of The Rubáiyát to add to my collection! The one on the right has lovely, if rather stylistically traditional and languid, illustrations by Gilbert James- first published 1909, mine being a 1973 reprint.
The book on the left has illustrations of a more energetic style by Otway McCannell, first published 1953, from what I can make out. The dust jacket is missing a chunk, but I'm still happy with my purchase

I tried. Poetry is not in my wheelhouse. I did read long enough to find this gem: You know, my Friends, with what a brave Carouse / I made a Second Marriage in my House; / Divorced old barren Reason from my Bed, / and took the Daughter of the Vine to Spouse — Rubaiyat #60

My positive(ish?) thought 💭 @BookNAround @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @dgingo @bookish_wookish illustration by Obvious State 🖤

"Here with a Loaf of Bread beneath the Bough,
A Flask of Wine, a Book of Verse- and Thou
Beside me singing in the Wilderness-
And Wilderness is Paradise enow."

- Quatrain XI

In light of recent and ongoing events, I thought a poem about the uncertainty of life and the inevitability of death might cheer me up... 😒

(It's only my sunny disposition that keeps me going.)

Since I am not able to calm myself enough to read a whole novel (even though I am still buying everything which looks interesting), I started to read the translated poems of Omar Khayyam again. This time the translations of Edward Henry Winfield. #omarkhayyam #orientallit

You know, my Friends, with what a brave Carouse
I made a Second Marriage in my house,
Divorced old barren Reason from my Bed,
And took the Daughter of the the Vine to Spouse.
#omarkhayyam #therubaiyat

Alike for those who for To-day prepare,
And those that after some To-morrows stare,
A miezzin from the Tower of Darknesa cries
“Fools! Your Reward is neither Here nor There!”
#omarkhayyan #therubaiyat

Ah, make the most of what we may yet spend,
Before we too into the Dust decend;
Dust into Dust, and under Dust, to lie;
Sans Wine, sans Song, sans Singer, and - sans End!
#omarkhayyam

And David‘s Lips are lock‘t; but in divine
High piping Pehlevi, with „Wine! Wine! Wine!
Red wine!“ - the Nightingale cried to the Rose
That yellow Check of hers to incarnadine.
#omarkhayyam

Same procedure as every Friday. But this time with literature deriving from the region I now live in. #omarkhayyam

For some we loved, the loveliest and the best
That from his Vintage rolling Time hath prest,
Have drunk their Cup a Round or two before,
And one by one crept silently to rest.

#poetrymatters #silence @TheSpineView

Three of my editions have inscriptions from previous owners:

- To Joan, Christmas 1945, from Ivy

- To Alice, For her faith, Irene. Monday, June 19th 1967

- Lilian Bright, June 1912. First Prize in "May" Essay Competition. Busy Bee Society

I love second hand books - they have more than one story to tell ???

This edition (9780004105512) contains the full texts of FitzGerald's 1st, 2nd and 5th editions, together with details of the textual variations of the 3rd and 4th editions. There are brief biographies of FitzGerald and Khayyám, a Comparative Table of Quatrains (which is really useful for looking at how FitzGerald rethought certain lines), FitzGerald's Notes to the 2nd Edition (in a more complete form than in other editions I've seen)... 👇🏻👇🏻

I have more copies of The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám than any other book, mainly the Fitzgerald translation, partly because of the different versions he published (five, of which the 1st, 2nd and 5th contain significant differences), and partly for the different illustrators. I've also got a couple of editions of more literal translations, but I've a soft spot for Fitzgerald, who took liberties with Khayyám but created something with its own merit.

Here with a Loaf of Bread beneath the Bough,
A Flask of Wine, a Book of Verse - and Thou
Beside me singing in the Wilderness -
And Wilderness is Paradise enow.

(Verse XI, First edition)

“Be happy for this moment.
This moment is your life.”

I love this quote
"Be happy in this moment.
This moment is your life "
What is your opinion
Past we don't remember
Future we don't know
All we have is this moment your present

#QuotsyDec17 #Light @TK421 from The Rubaiyat.....” AWAKE ! For morning in the bowl of night Has flung the Stone That put the Stars to Flight : And Lo the Hunter of the East has caught The Sultans turret in A noose of Light “. ✨✨✨

Probably my most elaborate #BookWithIllustrations. #decinbooks17 @bookisglee

Poetry buried by uninspired commentary so a so-so for this edition

A cup of tea and a new book

I've been #reading #poetry first thing in the morning for a long time now, and like one of those fragrance diffusers, this practice perfumes my days.

There might be deadlines, dental appointments, news of deaths and devastation, but this practice keeps a calm center to each day, and guides me back home within myself, when I go to bed.

Do you read or write #poetry ?
What place does it hold in your life?

#CoverLovers #AwesomeAutumnBooks @Jess7 Beautiful inside & out 🙏

Found at my parents house. This edition was published by Random House in 1947. On the inside cover my great-grandma wrote her name and the date 1950.

This lovely book caught my eye at the library's used book store. It was on the bottom shelf of a cart. I take my time in this store for this very reason. I knew this one had to be something special. It's so beautiful I would've bought it if it were written in a foreign language. It's a book of poetry. A serendipitous find because, at the time, I didn't realize it was #NationalPoetryMonth. The top panel background is from the endpapers.

We went antiquing looking for furniture, but I bought these instead. 😀 #bookhaul

As we start into a new year... ☺

I've never read this and it's kind of likely I never will, but this book was in my grandparents' library and I snagged it from them--almost entirely because of the reference to it in Music Man 😂 Needless to say, it was definitely originally #notinEnglish! #seasonsreadings2016