Judith Herzberg

Beemdgras is the second bundle of poems of the Dutch poet Judith Herzberg, published 1968. The bundle was a success, just like other poems published by Judith.

The poems are well written and captivating. Judith has the power to transfer the reader directly into an emotional state. However, I did not like the atmosphere. The poems are pessimistic in tone. Several times a beautiful nature scene is provoked, but always to be followed by disintegration, sorrow or anger. This resonates to my own show more pessimism that is to my view and in my case to dominant. This made the poems world-weary.

Sometimes this world-weariness was lightned with some humor, a rather dark kind of humor as in the small poem Hij deed zijn best

HE DID HIS BEST

He did his best in only eight years
didn't had to much luck with her
Homecoming, she was either gone or angry
her death endlessly improved their marriage

(my translation; no rhyme as in the original)
-------
[Hij deed zijn best maar in acht jaar
niet veel geluk gehad met haar
Thuis van zijn werk was zij óf weg óf boos
haar dood verbeterde hun huwelijk eindeloos] show less

Beemdgras is a volume of poetry by the Jewish writer Judith Herzberg. There are 70 poems in this volume, mostly short poems of less than a page. Beemdgras belongs to the early work of the writer, it was published in 1968. In these early poems, war and deportation do not play an important role. Most poems are written using free verse.

uitgeleend aan Bianca december 2024

Een monument voor de huishoudster van het gezin Herzberg en de hoedster van Judtih. Een klein geschrift van een overrompelende schoonheid.