John Ash (writer)
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| John Ash | |
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| Born | June 29, 1948 Manchester |
| Occupation | poet, writer, travel writer |
| Nationality | English |
| Writing period | 1978-present |
John Ash (born June 29, 1948) is an expatriate British poet and writer.
His lifelong interest in Byzantium (especially its achitecture) is a major theme which runs through his poetry, fiction and travel writing, along with family friends and the three major cities he has lived in. As well as his books (largely published by Carcanet), his work has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Village Voice, The Washington Post and Paris Review.
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[edit] Life
John Ash was born in Manchester, England in 1948, the son of schoolteachers. With a brief break to attend the University of Birmingham (B.A. 1969) and to take a post-graduation year in Cyprus, he remained in the city of his birth until 1985, at which time he moved to New York.[1]
In New York, he became associated with the New York School of Poets and formed a strong and lasting friendship with its leading proponent, John Ashbery. After stints teaching at Iowa and Berkeley, in 1996 he moved to Istanbul, where he has lived since, teaching at Boğaziçi University, before moving to Kadir Has University.
During this time, several of his books, including Selected Works and To the City, have appeared in Turkish translation, published by Yapi Kredi Publications, affiliated with the bank of the same name. Deluxe editions of The Anitolikon, published in a side-by-side English and Turkish edition by Yapi Kredi, featured illustrations by Peter Hristoff, a noted Turkish artist of Bulgarian Christian origin living in New York.
In a review of To The City, Poetry, said John Ash "could be the best English poet of his generation".[2] Most recently he was profiled in The Economist in an article by Hugh Pope, himself an author and formerly the Wall Street Journal correspondent in Istanbul. Pope has suggested that Ash is the leading light in a new "Istanbul School" of English-speaking poets taking their inspiration from the city. [3]
Following Byzantine Journey, and other travel writing, Ash led tours relevant sites and in 2006 wrote the script for the documentary "Istanbul for Aficionados". [4] He has also appeared on a BBC guide to Istanbul. [5]
[edit] Bibliography
[edit] Poetry
- The Parthian Stations (2007, ISBN 1857548728)
- To the City (2004, ISBN 1584980370)
- The Anatolikon (2002, ISBN 1584980117)
- Selected Poems (1996, ISBN 1857541553)
- The Burnt Pages (1991, ISBN 067940175X)
- Disbelief (1987, ISBN 0856356956)
- The Branching Stairs (1984, ISBN 0856355011)
- The Goodbyes (1982, ISBN 0856354236)
- The Bed (1981)
- Casino: A Poem in Three Parts (1978)
[edit] Fiction
- A Byzantine Journey (1995, ISBN 0679409343)
[edit] Travel
- Turkey, The Other Guide: Western and Southern Anatolia (2001, ISBN 9750802772)
[edit] Articles
- Field of Ruins in the Sand The New York Times, 1999, on Sergiopolis
- The Lost Heads of Balbura, The New York Times
- Celebration Istanbul New York Times Magazine, 2001
- Death by Drowning, The New York Times, 2002, on Yusufeli
- Istanbul's Glitter Domes The New York Times
- Bulgaria's Venerable Second City The New York Times, 2004, on Plovdiv
- Review: On the Edge, by Kenneth Koch, The New York Times
- Review: Constantinople: City of the World's Desire, by Philip Mansel, The Washington Post
[edit] Anthologies
His work has also appeared in a number of anthologies, including:
- The Best American Poetry series:
- The Harvill Book of Twentieth-Century Poetry in English (1999)
- New British Poetry (2004)
[edit] Awards
- Whiting Writers' Award (1986)
[edit] References
- ^ Head, Dominic (2006). The Cambridge Guide to Literature in English. Cambridge University Press, 46. ISBN 0521831792.
- ^ Review: In the City, Poetry
- ^ A Byzantine journey, Hugh Pope, The Economist, February 15, 2007
- ^ Istanbul's First Guidebook Documentary
- ^ Mediterranean Tales: Istanbul
[edit] External links
- Carcanet profile
- Ash's poem "The Middle Kingdom", "The Sweeping Gesture" and an overview from The North no. 8 (1990)
- Review of The Parthian Stations in The Guardian
