The Basement Trains (a 21st century poem)

The poem begins in 'an ancient garden in the midnight city ' where a nocturnal recollection of the past begins an epic voyage traversing centuries of ideas and continents of profound imagery. The Basement Trains Payne's greatest long poem written when he was 28 years old conjures up a wealth of poetic legacies: from Dante's visit to the underworld to TS Eliot's 'Mind of Europe.' Here one sees William Blake Milton the Catholic Bible Greek and Roman myth Russian folklore; and beyond this one hears the voice of Roman Payne in its purest poetic form. This bilingual first-edition contains the superb translation into French by Aurélien Galateau. This edition is illustrated with photographic plates by the author. Published by ModeRoom Press 2006 - Paris France.