In his own words | Bangkok Post: feature

PEOPLE

Edwin Thumboo _ known as the statesman of Singaporean poetry in the English language _ is the simple epitome of old-world charming bewilderment. The poet and professor emeritus of English literature comfortably leans on a couch, reciting poems _ the works of Yeats, Auden and Keats _ with his eyes closed. His voice moves like a wave rolling, receding, crushing the shore before gradually flowing back into the sea. His facial expressions are worth a hundred words that can make people understand why and how a man falls in love with the beauty carried in forms of interlacing words. "I like poems that sound good. The quality of good poems is not only in the words, they have to sound good.

PHOTO: COURTESY OF MANDARIN ORIENTAL BANGKOK

"I come from the generation who can remember poems and recite poems," said Thumboo, who was educated in the British Colonial era, read Western classic literature and found pleasure in daily life, reading and reciting poems. At the age of 17, he rose to fame when his first poetry book Rib of Earth, published in 1956. He has since had many books of his poetry published. His poems _ many of them about society and nationality _ are popular countrywide. He has accepted many prizes, including an SEA Write Award in 1979, making him the first Singaporean to receive this coveted literary award.