Book Description

First book-length collection of the work of the celebrated Israeli poet. Reality Crumbs is the first book-length collection in English of the work of the celebrated Israeli poet, playwright, and filmmaker Raquel Chalfi. Versatile and unpredictable, Chalfi’s often visionary and dramatic poetry has been acclaimed for its independence and daring by leading Israeli critics. In the words of poet and critic Eli Hirsch, her work is a “thrilling combination of simplicity and chaos, clarity and mystery.” Ever present in Chalfi’s poetry is the need to touch, to feel the tangible and sensuous, as well as a desire to break all boundaries and smash so-called conventional wisdoms, be they social, cultural, or linguistic. Her poems are often anxious, restless, inquisitive, nearly physical in their constant search for, and chasing after, that one element that will help them get a step closer to grasping the mystery at their center. And if she takes on the persona of a wild biker or a witch, it is not merely to travel freely in the land of fancy and so taste another’s life, but, more importantly, to measure the extent of her empathy. “Raquel Chalfi’s poems are filled with sharp intelligence, but also passion, gusto, and surprise. You never know where these poems are going, but they are carrying a fully lived life of pleasure and pain with them—and often they will sneak up on you and make you laugh. Or else make you want to dance.” — Alicia Ostriker “This is very wise poetry, insightful, often reminiscent of Wis?awa Szymborska—in its lucidity, its intellectualism, its new humanism The range of its subject matter and the consistency of its philosophy are unique and highly impressive.” — Ariel Hirschfeld “Raquel Chalfi electrifies words that are very familiar to us, and makes us see, for the first time, what we have seen many times without seeing. She’s a lyrical poet, subtle and precise, whose work radiates warmth, life, and wisdom.” — Amos Oz “Chalfi’s poetry is complex, it cannot be defined or labeled as belonging to any particular literary trend—a multifaceted poetry, linguistically rich and daring.” — Haaretz “Chalfi is an important poet. There is independence and risk-taking in her work, and she has broken through several literary fences You can feel the earth shaking under your feet Her poetry is unique and remarkable No one writes like her.” — Gabriel Moked “Chalfi tries to seize nothingness, to peel off the layers of spiritual existence She spreads her broad poetic wings over all this with great momentum and unimaginable gentleness.” — Dimui