Welcome to this, our first issue, of The Copenhagen Review.
The magazine will most often take place in five languages, English, German, Swedish, Norwegian and Danish. The working language of the magazine is English. We begin now with an internet version.
We do not, at this time, encourage unsolicited manuscripts.
The Copenhagen Review’s home is Copenhagen which, for those untutored in geography, finds itself at the moment in Denmark. Denmark is perched on the top of northern Europe, just above Germany. It is there the editorial staff live and work. Yet the magazine is meant to be international in scope, with contributions from many places. It is hoped writers will be inspired by reading colleagues in various countries.
We thus imagine TCR as a bridge-building project, mostly from Scandinavia and the German-speaking countries to the English-writing countries, but also to and from the rest of the world. Of course.
Although the magazine is intended primarily for writers, we hope it will be of interest to intelligent and informed readers who do not themselves take up the pen.
The Copenhagen Review will, of course, grow. In addition to literary material, we will someday include art and music and other things we can’t think of now. And perhaps one day we shall be able to receive contributions we do not ourselves solicit.
This first edition includes poetry by the English poet and artist Lucy Trevitt, the German poet Nora Bossong, the esteemed Swedish poet Göran Sonnevi, the recently deceased Danish poet Willum Peder Trellund, the Danish writer Gittan Sarah Pedersen. We are also happy to bring several poems in English by Norway’s great writer Stein Mehren. In so doing we wish him well and pray that he may be well.
Vladan Cukvas, who hails originally from ex-Yugoslavia and who now lives in Denmark, contributes with the first third of his fantasy novel, Dream Tamer, in English.
The presiding spirits from the past are Peter Hille and Else Lasker-Schüler. We bring excerpts from their work in German.
Another figure from the past, the Swedish poet from the early 19th century, Erik Johan Stagnelius, is also present in this edition. In Swedish.
Judyta Preis, whose recent translation, together with Jørgen Herman Monrad, of the Polish author Bruno Schulz have brought her deserved acclaim, brings us an appreciation of Germany’s great writer W.G. Sebald.
T Smith. juxtaposes one of his photographic pieces with texts of Gittan Sarah Pedersen which we bring in both German and Danish.
That then is what we wish to bring you now. Take your time. And let us know how the magazine strikes you. Should you feel inclined.
The Editor
Tak....to Jakob Enevoldsen, Anna Ferslev, Susanne Asmussen, Lars Andreasen.......