A timely collection, entirely devoted to Eastern European writing (Serbian, Russian, Polish, Lithuanian, Hungarian, Ukrainian, Slovak) which MR. COGITO has featured in smaller doses for a number of years. As might be expected, the themes are heavily influenced by politics & history; the poetry itself is lyrical, impassioned, and often pessimistic. Marcelijus Martinaitis, one of Lithuania's leading poets, weighs in with a number of his "Ballads of Kukutis," about a mythical folk hero emblematic of ethnic identity; [the next issue of MR. COGITO is completely devoted to more of Martinaits' work; see review in Chapbook section]. Echo's of Milorad Pavic's myth/epic Dictionary of the Khazars seem unavoidable, since many Western readers will have few other points of reference; other work herein helps balance the picture, presenting the whole range of human concerns.--luigi
This review originally appeared in TapRoot Reviews #4,
Contact the editor, luigi-bob drake, at Burning Press
Copyright Burning Press 1994, 1995.