Diaries of a Young Poet

In April 1898 Rainer Maria Rilke not yet twenty-three began a diary of his Florence visit. It was to record in the form of an imaginary dialogue with his mentor and then-lover Lou Andreas-Salome his firsthand experiences of early Renaissance art. The project quickly expanded to include not only thoughts on life history and artistic genius but also unguarded moments of revulsion self-doubt and manic expectation. The result is an intimate glimpse into the young Rilke already experimenting brilliantly with language and metaphor. For the lover of Rilke this superb translation of the poet''s early diaries will be a watershed. Through Edward Snow''s and Michael Winkler''s brilliantly supple and faithful translation . . . a new and more balanced picture of Rilke will emerge.Ralph Freedman