March 28, 2024. The latest issue of the Poëziekrant (Poetry Newspaper) 2/2024 contains, among many other things, Helena Van Praet’s beautiful review, ‘Bringing memories to life through sprinkle speech,’ about the poetry collection dagtekening van liefdesvormen (Querido, 2024) by Rozalie Hirs. Van Praet writes:
“Hirs makes use of an impressive multiform sprinkle speech – in which the speaker gathers memories, as it were – but this challenging language does not make the collection any less readable (or singable!) because Hirs is one of the most virtuosic contemporary Dutch-language poets.”
“This musicality is obviously related to her background as a composer, but it is also defined by her impetuous handling of language and the way she plays with words, as it were.”
“Yet this is not a collection of love poems in the narrow sense: the concept of love covers a deep connection with the world.”
“It makes dagtekening van liefdesvormen Hirs’ most human collection to date.”
“The play with grammatical functions and derailing sentences so typical of Hirs’ oeuvre still play an important role, but this collection stands out above all for its rampant wordplay.”
Read the full review at Poëziekrant
