Yehuda Amichai Poems

Yehuda Amichai was an important Israeli poet whose writing has been translated into more than 40 languages. He was a two-time nominee for the Nobel Prize in Literature, and his books include Now and In Other Days, Selected Poems of Yehuda Amichai, and Poems. He passed away in 2000.

A Child is Something Else Again

by Yehuda Amichai

‘A Child is Something Else Again’ by Yehuda Amichai is a poem about parenthood and childhood. A child represents a great deal, the speaker says, and provides a parent with the will to live.

Yehuda Amichai's poetry is known for its accessibility and emotional depth, often exploring universal themes of love, loss, and human nature through a personal lens, and this poem is a great example of his verse. His use of imagery and language in this poem is masterful, and his work has had a significant influence on Israeli poetry.

A child is something else again. Wakes up

in the afternoon and in an instant he's full of words,

in an instant he's humming, in an instant warm,

instant light, instant darkness.

Yehuda Amichai Poems

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