Shirim (Poems)
Vilnius: Farlag fun dem farayn fun di Yidishe literatn un zshurnalistn in Vilne (Druḳeray Br. Rozenṭal), 1920. First edition. Softcover. Octavo. 85pp. (3). Brown illustrated wraps. Expressionist front cover illustration by B. Gotler, with publisher's device on back cover. This book is the first publication of Kulbak's work. Moyshe Kulbak (1896–1937) was a Yiddish-language writer and poet, and a central figure in Yiddish literature in the 1920s and 30s. His works include poetry and "mystical" novels, often thought of as being satirical and critical of the realities of life in the Soviet Union. He contributed to Yiddish periodicals in Germany and Poland, and published frequently in the New York-based “Di Tsukunft". Among other positions in Yiddish cultural institutions, he served as chairman of the Yiddish PEN Club, one of the earliest publications of the Union of Yiddish Writers and Journalists in Vilna, founded in 1916. The Union was dissolved during the Soviet occupation around 1940. Kulbak was arrested and executed in September of 1937 during the Stalinist purges. Wrappers have been professionally restored with paper, at the bottom of front and back cover and along spine. All text unaffected. Interior with pages yellowed due to age. Title page with minor smudges, creases and staining. Minor water stain to top left corner of pages 3-9, and along right edges of pages 70 to the end. Wrappers and interior in overall in very good condition. vg. Item #40720
Price: $2,500.00