Naomi Shihab Nye:
“Darwish is the premier poetic voice of the Palestinian people… lyrical, imagistic, plaintive, haunting, always passionate, and elegant–and never anything less than free—what he would dream for all his people.”
Bookslut:
“Beautiful… inescapably lyrical.” ― Review by Elizabeth Bachner
read the full review here
Chuck Wachtel:
“The truest of poets… In the Presence of Absence is a book possessed of a remarkable and enduring beauty.”
The Independent:
“[A] unique achievement… It offers costly wisdoms from a life journey, rendered in the opaque lyricism of Darwish’s poetry…His is the voice of dispossessed Palestine but its longings, including sheer lust, are universal. This book overflows with resonant lines and questions… It is a book for life.” ― Review by Guy Mannes-Abott
read the full review here.
Nimalah Baaith-Ducharme ’20