Product Description

Widely regarded as the finest poet of his generation, Seamus Heaney is the subject of numerous critical studies; but no book-length portrait has appeared until now. Through his own lively and eloquent reminiscences, "Stepping Stones" retraces the poet's steps from his early works, through to his receipt of the 1995 Nobel Prize for Literature and his post-Nobel life. It is supplemented with a large number of photographs, many from the Heaney family album and published here for the first time. In response to firm but subtle questioning from Dennis O'Driscoll, Seamus Heaney sheds a personal light on his work (poems, essays, translations, plays) and on the artistic and ethical challenges he faced, providing an original, diverting and absorbing store of reflections, opinions and recollections.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #52669 in Books
• Published on: 2008-11-06
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 560 pages

About the Author
Dennis O'Driscoll's previous publications include New and Selected Poems (2004), a Poetry Book Society Special Commendation, and Reality Check (2007). He is editor of The Bloodaxe Book of Poetry Quotations (2006), author of a collection of essays and reviews, Troubled Thoughts, Majestic Dreams (2001), and a contributor to The Cambridge Companion to Seamus Heaney(2008). He works as a civil servant in Dublin.

Customer Reviews

What we have Always Hoped from Poets
This is a wonderful book. Seamus Heaney is everything we hoped a poet or artist would be - wise, unpretentious, generous, observant. It may seem a long book at first glance, but it's full of wonderful comments about poetry and life. Well worth reading.

Grounded
If I had to use one word to sum up what I learned about Seamus Heaney from reading the excellent Stepping Stones it would be: grounded. Heaney is a serious man writing serious work and in this collection of questions and responses with Dennis O'Driscoll it is apparent he doesn't take himself too seriously. It is full of insights into the man and his work- how does he keep performing at the top of his game? Heaney says it is simply a matter of "Getting started, keeping going, getting started again".

Uplifting
In an age of soundbites, twitters and executive summaries, there's an old-fashioned unhurried country feel to this book - it's a bit like sharing in a conversation between two wise, droll and tolerant people. The book is erudite but very accessible; long, but my only regret was that it wasn't longer. I felt a sense of loss when I finished it.