Ronny Someck

Ronny Someck was born in Baghdad in 1951 into an Iraqi Jewish family and moved with his family to Israel as a young child. At Tel Aviv University he studied Hebrew literature and philosophy, and drawing at the Avni Academy of Art. A poet, artist and author, he is the recipient of numerous literary prizes, and has published more than 13 poetry collections, two children’s books, with translations into many languages including Arabic, and may other works. He has worked with street gangs, and currently teaches literature and leads creative writing workshops.

In Banipal 72 – Iraqi Jewish Writers, Almog Behar introduces translations of his poems, writing: “Ronny Someck’s popularity as an artist and poet has much to do with the poet’s willingness to act as a “travelling agent” – whether for his own poems, or for poetry as whole – wherever it is required: in a library, school, café, prison, or care home, and no matter the audience. Above all else, Someck’s wide appeal is inextricably tied to his deep-seated belief that poetry is an art form that must maintain a state of constant dialogue with as wide-ranging an audience as possible, as opposed to the same, niche 300 to 400 poetry devotees.”

For more information, go to http://www.ronnysomeck.com/

• The full introduction, Exploring Ronny Someck, by Almog Behar, to eight poems by Ronny Someck, translated from the Hebrew by Eran Edry can be read in Banipal 72 – Iraqi Jewish Writers.

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Banipal 72 - Iraqi Jewish Writers (Autumn-Winter 2021)

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