Pencil of Rays and Spiked Mace: Selected Poems

Translated from The Danish by Gregory Pardlo With an Introduction by Stephen Cain Produced in conjunction with the author's appearance at Harbourfront's 2004 International Festival of Authors in Toronto as part of their SuperDanish Festival, Pencil of Rays and Spike Mace is the first full-length collection in English by Niels Lyngsø, one of the most original poets working in Denmark today. Translated by New York poet, scholar, and translator Gregory Pardlo, who worked closely with the author to capture not only the multiple nuances of each poem but to also transpose their deliberate physical and visual properties, Pencil of Rays and Spiked Mace contains work from three of Lyngsø's collections: Stof [Matter], Force Majeure [Force Majeure], and MORFEUS [MORPHEUS]. Like their Danish originals, these poems "make reading happen" and are a fascinating introduction to the visionary and conceptual landscape of a truly unique poet whose work, as Stephen Cain suggests in his introduction, shares similar qualities to the poetry of some of Canada's more daring practitioners, such as bill bissett, bpNichol, and Christian Bøk.