"Raups is an absolute poet and a poet of the absolute. He is one of the very few contemporary poets whose work is so densely intense that each of his poems forces us to realize that 'words' possess immeasurable depth. This realization demands an unconditional involvement of all of one?s being, mind and senses, to grasp the essence of the poem, and in so doing, the reader gets a glimpse of the absolute. -- Janis Elsbergs, poet - Ariel (Sweden) "This insightful book of poetry with its powerfully structured story line and prose-worthy subject matter is as gripping as a well-written novel. The most striking of its many dimensions is its spiritual orientation, which does not seem either superfluous or slanted toward any specific author?s canon. The world is eternal, all eras in principle are accessible and capable of coursing through us. And that which we truly desire is transitory and ephemeral. A pigeon returns from beyond the flux of time and history "carrying/ in its beak a sliver/of your/skin" -- and thus Raups makes it clear that metaphysics capitulates in the face of human sorrow." -- CULTURE FORUM (Latvia)/ December 5,2008. Ieva Melgalve "Edvins Raups has a truly distinctive voice as a poet. His refined and deeply metaphorical poetry (Live-Ing It, 1995; 33 Mysterious Years and Poems, 1997; cook up something transitory for me, 2002; Bird?, 2008) has garnered awards and praise with astonishing regularity from readers, critics and colleagues alike. His work has been translated and published in English, Swedish, German, Turkish, Bulgarian, and Ukrainian." -- Ieva Kolmane, Editor-in-Chief of the literary monthly ?Karogs? (Latvia)