Halcyon

This carefully organized sequence of 88 lyrics is a diary of a summer spent in Tuscany—part of the time spent with the Italian actress Eleanora Duse. The poems evoke specific times and places and they conjure up emotions, memories, and myths associated with each place. Beginning in early summer, they move through the seasons, changing in verse form and mood, and always reflecting the sensuous qualities of language.

Gabriele D'Annunzio was an Italian poet, writer, novelist, dramatist, and war hero, who went on to play a controversial role in Italian politics prior to the Fascist movement. J. G. Nichols is a poet and translator.