Velimir Khlebnikov: A Critical Study

Khlebnikov is now recognized as a major Russian poet of the twentieth century, having for years been dismissed as an unintelligible verbal trickster. Cooke provides the first broad study in English of Khlebnikov's writings. The book is both informative and interpretative, and maps the contours of Khlebnikov's still largely uncharted poetic world. This exploration highlights the complex relationship between the poet and his public, examines Khlebnikov's preoccupations with the meaning of language and images of war and conflict, and cites the transformation of a poet-warrior into the poet-prophet. Cooke also discusses the vexing question of Khlebnikov's attitude toward manuscripts and book concepts.