Haunted by the death of a friend’s daughter, Rainer Maria Rilke spent three feverish weeks writing Sonnets to Orpheus. At around the same time, he completed The Duino Elegies, which offer meditations on love, death, God, and the meaning of life. Intimately connected in themes, these verses are regarded as the poet’s masterpieces and appear here in the acclaimed translations by Jessie Lemont. AUTHOR: Although his poetry was recognized and admired by leading European artists, Austro-German poet Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 1926) was virtually unknown during his lifetime. He achieved international acclaim with his last two works, Duino Elegies and Sonnets to Orpheus, and he has come to be recognised as a master of verse.