Summer Requiem by Vikram SethMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Vikram Seth's most recent collection of poems is new and at the same time old. Reading this book and then revisiting his earlier collections, I was surprised to see how they are all of the same voice. This is not a criticism, but rather a statement of awe : Seth the poet seems to have been fully formed from an earlier age. His remarkable felicity with words, ability to evoke the most beautiful of images with a wonderful economy (there are parts of An Equal Music that read like poems) is evident everywhere in this slender book, that allows itself to be carried around to dive into when one needs respite from life. The very good 'What's in it?' recalls very strongly, Byron's superior 'When We Two Parted', 'Can't' appeals to every one of us who has had to go work on Monday mornings; the best of the lot might be the plaintive 'Caged', which resembles in spirit The Eagles' 'Best of My Love'.
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