R. S. THOMAS

The Sky-Rhyming Child   /   Das himmelreimende Kind

with CD (special edition contains an original etching by Vroni Schwegler)

“The project of translating R. S. Thomas into German, clearly an ongoing labour of love (and respect) for Perryman, seems a very valuable one, and this beautifully made book a fitting element of the centenary celebrations” (PN Review)

BABEL is proud to have been associated with this poet’s work for 30 years. BABEL’s seventh bilingual volume of poetry by R.S. Thomas, The Sky-Rhyming Child / Das himmelreimende Kind is, like each of the others, a selection of some of his finest poems (in this case from 18 different collections spanning six decades) and presents a wide range of his themes and tones. All the poems include attributes of Christmas, Advent or winter – without sentimentality and without cynicism. Two of the poems are still uncollected, and one has never been published before.

This seasonal volume contains a CD of the 30 poems in the book in English and German, with two of them read by R.S. Thomas himself. Helen Leitner plays the harp between groups of poems – music specially composed for this CD by Wilfred Hiller, and a piece by Benjamin Britten.

The Sky-Rhyming Child / Das himmelreimende Kind was printed by offset lithography on 120gsm off-white wood-free paper. Format: 24 x 17.5 cm; 84pp.; 1,000 copies. The book is sewn, with a 240gsm wrap-around wood-free paper cover (Munken Pure Design Card) printed in two colours.

60 numbered specials contain an original etching by Vroni Schwegler, numbered and signed by the artist.
Vroni Schwegler, born in 1970, was a student of Hermann Nitsch at the Städelschule, Frankfurt, and has provided etchings for a number of BABEL books.
The specials are also signed by Helen Leitner and Wilfried Hiller.

R.S.Thomas   The Sky-Rhyming Child / Das himmelreimende Kind  (with CD)    ISBN 978-3-931798-43-7    £ 22

The Sky-Rhyming Child / Das himmelreimende Kind special    £ 118

cf.   The Bright Field / Das helle Feld,   Frieze,   Decidious Language / Laubbaum Sprache,   Charity's Scarecrow / Die Vogelscheuche Nächstenliebe,   With Claws of Fire / Mit Fängen aus Feuer,   Stone Twittering / Steinzwitschern,   The Cross,   Das Kreuz,   In Delicate Nooses / In zierlichen Schlingen,   and   Dove-Marks on Stone