Vera Pavlova

Poet. Russian-language American poet Vera Pavlova is the author of around twenty poetry collections. She was 24 years old when her poems were first published in the monthly literary magazine Yunost. Recognition and widespread acclaim came to Pavlova following the publication of her poems in a supplement of the newspaper Segodnya. In total, she has published 18 books of poetry. Over the years, several of her poetry collections—Vezdes’ (2003), Ruchnaya klad’ (2006), and Pisma v sosednyuyu komnatu (2006)—were nominated as books of the year. Her poems have been translated into 22 languages worldwide and appear in highly acclaimed magazines such as The New Yorker.

The poet is a frequent participant in many international festivals. Vera Pavlova recently published a book containing 1001 of her handwritten poems, featuring illustrations by the poet’s 4-year-old daughter.

Vera Pavlova’s participation in the Tbilisi International Literature Festival is supported by the U.S. Embassy in Georgia.

* * *

The wrinkles around the lips placed the mouth in parentheses. The wrinkles around the eyes placed the gaze in quotation marks. The wrinkles crossed out what was written on the forehead. The wrinkles on the neck, however, are the gray hair of the bride.

Translated from Russian by Shota Iatashvili

* * *

Why is the word yes so short? It ought to be the longest, the most complex, so that you wouldn’t dare utter it all at once, so that, coming to your senses, right in the middle of the word you would fall silent…

Translated from Russian by Vasil Guleuri