"...a moving and often brilliantly insightful act of homage...Throughout this important and original book, she brings her critical acumen - as well as respect and affection - to bear on the achievement of her friend and mentor. Any reader who has not yet entered Jabès' unique oeuvre - too often reputed to be abstruse - now has the key."--John Taylor, Paths to Contemporary French Literature

"Lavish Absence is a comprehensive yet intimate introduction to the writing and thought of Edmond Jabès, a critical figure for 20th-century poetry and philosophy. It is also a welcome articulation of Rosmarie Waldrop's own poetics, which are among the most influential in contemporary American poetry."--Charles Bernstein, Director of the Poetics Program, State University of New York at Buffalo

"Lavish Absence is a comprehensive yet intimate introduction to the writing and thought of Edmond Jabès, a critical figure for 20th-century poetry and philosophy. It is also a welcome articulation of Rosmarie Waldrop's own poetics, which are among the most influential in contemporary American poetry."--Charles Bernstein, Director of the Poetics Program, State University of New York at Buffalo