"Readers will be deeply grateful to the
late Peter Oram for giving new life to the
work of a major Russian poet who has
never been fully recognized in the English-speaking
world - even if his haunting words
have been heard in Russian by the millions
who have seen his son's film Mirror.


Arseny Tarkovsky lived through the
Soviet period from beginning to end,
preserving his inner independence and
leaving a precious legacy of memorable
lyrics that achieve a dream-like potency
of suggestion. Oram's inventive and
beautifully shaped translations combine
in an exemplary way poetic freedom and
a careful attention to the form and the
sentiment of the originals."


Peter France
Professor Emeritus,
University of Edinburgh