The Song of Songs by Ariel Bloch

The Song of Songs by Ariel Bloch

Your sweet loving is better than wine.

So begins the Song of Songs, often referred to as the Song of Solomon, one of the greatest love poems of all time. Set in a fragrant world of fertility and abundance, the Song celebrates the sexual awakening of a young woman and her lover, and the intoxicating experience of falling in love. It is no wonder that this book of the Old Testament, composed over two thousand years ago, continues to be a source of inspiration to poets and lovers.

In their lyrical new translation, Ariel Bloch and Chana Bloch -- he a distinguished professor of Semitics, she an award-winning poet -- restore the sensuousness of the original in language that is rich, joyous, and passionate. Scrupulously faithful to the Hebrew text, the Blochs strip away the veils of mistranslation that have obscured the power and meaning of the poem.

Professor Emerita of English at Mills College, where she taught for over thirty years and supervised the Creative Writing Program, Chana Bloch is the author of award-winning books of poetry, translation, and study. Bloch is a co-translator of Yehuda Amichai and Dahlia Ravikovitch's poems, as well as The Song of Songs (Modern Library, 2006).