Kuno Raeber

KUNO  RAEBER (1922-1992) This Swiss writer’s considerable body of work---whose spare poems weigh tons, whose novels & stories, radio plays, essays, translations and reviews have left an indelible mark on European literature that is just becoming clearer & clearer – is now getting the attention it deserves thanks to a seven-volume edition recently published, magnificently edited by Christiane Wyrwa & Matthias Klein. A devoted “student” of philosophy, history, literature, mythology, and theology, Raeber turned to a writing life after a deep spiritual crisis undermined his Catholic faith, as Wyrwa has written. Initially spurned shortly after being inducted into the Gruppe 47, Raeber needed some time to recover from the shock of sudden rejection before emerging with commanding poems and prose that couldn’t and wouldn’t, finally, be ignored much longer. (Full disclosure: Raeber was Oberlin College’s first Max Kade Writer-in-Residence, and replaced Friebert, on sabbatical, from 1967-68, which led to a working relationship resulting eventually in two collections.) Special thanks to Carl Hanser Verlag/Munich for permission to publish these poems. Raeber photo: Courtesy of scaneg Verlag Munich Germany