Vega's Fugitive

Marina Tsvetaeva (1892–1941) was a Russian poet who lived through the turbulent years of the Russian Revolution and its aftermath. Despite exile and hardship, she wrote poems, verse plays, and prose pieces; she is considered one of the most brilliant Russian poets of the twentieth century. Her early poetry collection Milestones was published in 2002 by Northwestern University Press in a translation by Robin Kemball.Alyssa Dinega Gillespie is the author and editor of numerous scholarly books and articles on Russian and East European literature and a prize-winning translator of Russian and Ukrainian poetry and fiction, as well as a poet herself. This is her first book-length collection of translated verse.

• AcknowledgementsIntroductionPart I. That Country Vanished"As you walk past — so much like me…"Poems about MoscowTo My ForefathersPoems to Pushkin"Our cruel age spared no attention…"Readers of NewspapersTrees ("A block in a fashionable district…")"When satiated with sponging…"Wolf"Nostalgia for the motherland!…""In my Moscow — cupolas burn so bright!…"(September 1938) "Bounteous and spacious…"(March 1939) "O sorrow floods my eyes!…""A day will come, my marvelous creation…"Dawn on the RailwayCountry"To the Russian rye I send regards…"Part II. Brow and Womb"One of my ancestors fiddled tunes…""Hell awaits us, sisters passionate…"OmensGirlfriend"In olden days you loved me like a mother…""August — asters…""What tenderness is this, welling?…""Placing my hand on my heart…"MagdalinaElderberryAstride a Red Steed"I'm the page that's ready for your pen…"Poems for an OrphanFor Alya("Not one bead of your blood is healthy…")"My two hands, so gently resting…""If even this coral on my neck is…""Sibyl: burnt out, sibyl: stump…""These are ashes of treasures…"HousePart III. Souls of Us Bodies"This gypsy passion for parting!…""The demon in me…"Poem of a Mountain"Two trees desire to come together…"From the Sea"Join hands — and skip…"Poem of the End"Flawlessly, matchlessly, life lies…"Part IV. Burning not Warming"Simple is my bearing…""Whatsoever others don't need — give me!…""Imprudent fervency — and prudence…""My verses grow, like starbursts and like roses…""My fine garret palace, my attic palatial!…"PoetsThe NaiadAn Attempt at Jealousy"The world has lucky men and women with…"EmigrantTo You — One Hundred Years from Now"Dis—tance, sundering: versts and acres…"PairsSoulWiresThat's How They Listen In…The BushAttempt at a RoomPart V. Immortality's SnakebitePoem of the Air"I opened my veins: unstoppable…""To Skulk Through…""My massive city in the dark — night…"Eurydice to OrpheusDesk"That first verse echoes on my lips…"The Bus"I call quits: now you've digested me…""Astray in thoughts of others, elsewheres…"Garden"Still too soon — not to be!…"EpitaphTrees"When I gaze out at the drifting leaves…"The Hour of the Soul"It's time to shed the amber…""Seclusion, solitude: withdraw…"AnnotationsSelected BibliographyChronology of PoemsIndex of Russian Titles

"A foremost poet of the twentieth century, Marina Tsvetaeva challenges her readers with tricky syntax and powerful rhythms. Alyssa Gillespie presents the poet's context and central traits in a useful introduction, and her translations offer not merely profound understanding of each word: she catches the emotional temperature and passionate tempo that make this poet's voice unique, sweeping the reader into each poem." —Sibelan Forrester, Swarthmore College