Germain Nouveau's Symbolist Poetry, 1851-1920 Valentines, Translated with an Introduction and Commentary by Gerald Groves

In Valentines Germain Nouveau - still a relatively unknown contributor to modern French literature, but one considered by Andre Breton to have been a pioneer of surrealism - displays his originality by means of a form of intellectual pointillism, benign irony, a playful parody of Parnassian images, and frequent introduction of a shocking gros mot. The Valentines, the composition of which marked the climax of Nouveau's literary life, is an expression of the poet's joy in living and in loving an object worthy of existence. Includes both English and French renditions of Nouveau's poems.