Ferdinand

by Louis Zukofsky

Jonathan Cape,, (1968). Very near fine in a like dustjacket.. First printing. A small volume of two stories by this noted poet - the very short "It Was" and the longer title story, originally written in 1940-1942. Selected bibliography. Cape Editions 25 under the editorship of Nathaniel Tarn. 96 pp.

Paperback

First published January 1, 1968

About the author

Louis Zukofsky was one of the most important second-generation American modernist poets. He was co-founder and primary theorist of the Objectivist group of poets and was to be an important influence on subsequent generations of poets in America and abroad.

Reviews

[Mat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains two prose works by the Objectivist and modernist poet Louis Zukofsky.

The first prose 'sketch' entitled 'It Was' reminded me of Beckett's later works - highly condensed and short.

The main story of this book is a short novella called Ferdinand, about a young man who is the son of a governor, or some sort of public official (mayor?), estranged from his parents. We never completely understand why he is raised by his uncle and aunt, why his parents do not want to see him, but this is just the beginning of the intrigue in this short novel.

Ferdinand slowly comes of age, trying to discover who he is, how he feels about his parents, where he fits in in the whole scope of things in a time of war etc.

The story builds slowly and tightly towards an ending which was very confusing, as confusing as the end of the movie Vanilla Sky. I do not wish to give anything away here but I had to re-read the last 5-10 pages to figure out what actually happened.

Are poets good at writing novels? Usually no, and the same can be said in general about novelists trying to write poetry. Having said that, Zukofsky is able to create a highly poetic prose tale, which a standard novelist is unable to, but at the same time he lacks the convincing threads of narrative that one feels from a seasoned prose writer or novelist. However, I think all things considered, this is a finely wrought piece of work, which could have been fleshed out into a marvellous novel if he had devoted a little more time to it. This is a short novella with very vivid imagery and a relatively realistic storyline so I can recommend this for anyone who is looking for something mildly diverting.

[Charles Bechtel · Rating 4 out of 5]

There have been, for me, some books that infect, sometimes insidiously, like Faulkner's "Sound and the Fury" and the collection of Hemingway stories, and some that haunt the reading memory, like Evs Figes Light, anything by Richard Matheson, and The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles.

Zukofsky's novel haunts me mostly because of the precision with which he sets his description. As with most poet's singular attempt at a novel, such as Galway Kinnell with his Black Light , the story is not as well contructed a narrative along traditional lines as a common novelist would do it, but story is less important to poets than immersion, which Zukovsky's excels at. By immersion I mean into a sensual experience instead of along intellectual stridings toward an understanding.

The story haunts because of its superb evocation of its emotional perceptions, the feelings of isolation, loss — especially of innocence, the pressures of expectation on a child of privilege.

I feel especially lucky to own a Cape edition, a small, compact, hard paper copy produced by people who believe the forgotten gems of the world must be brought into the light as often as the huge diamonds of the canon. If anyone finds this book, and is his or herself a passionate lover of sentences and words, Ferdinand will take hold and haunt you as well.

[Willie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es difícil explicar el hipnotismo que provoca Zukovsky, su prosa es como una bruma que envuelve y hechiza; suave, embelesadora, y al mismo tiempo aturrulladora, dispersa, misteriosa; es capaz de pasar de la reflexión concreta a la ambigüedad romántica y esquiva en la misma frase, el mismo párrafo; es como si fuese dando saltos de aquí para allá, sin brusquedad, con levedad y delicadeza, transportando al lector junto a su relato, salpicado de disgresiones y reflexiones acerca de la vida (niñez, familia, guerra, amistad, etc.), poderosas imágenes que se forman inevitablemente en la mente del receptor, sensaciones que experimenta y transmite el protagonista con el narrador como intermediario. Se pasa del tiempo preciso al más inconcreto y difuso, uno parece anclado en la cabina de un barco que navega apaciblemente sobre el cielo, no quiere despegar los ojos de la seductora prosa, ni desea alterar la mente de la mágica atmósfera en la que el autor le ha inmiscuido.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

A strange and awkward novella. The writing is often peculiar, with oddly (un)punctuated sentences. Perhaps part of the problem with the novella is that the titular character, Ferdinand, is so distant that he is rather unsympathetic. There's a confusing sequence at the end in which he seems to have deliberately caused a car accident in order to kill his aging aunt and uncle, but this turns out to have been a dream. A too-predictable turn. However, at points, Zukofsky raises a strikingly prescient critique of corporate greed and ecological despoilage.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read it for a very silly reason... my car back then was named Ferdinand.

[giuseppe manley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finally understood the cold war