"Five Minutes After the air Raid", is a poignant and nostalgic evocation of a woman who loses everything after her home and family are destroyed by a bomb.
The poem is written by Miroslav Holub, who skilfully balances the use of a factual journalistic tone with striking and at times shocking imagery, which combined evoke strong reactions in the reader. The encompassing sensation of horror and tragedy, are profoundly characteristic of Holub's entire oeuvre. He was renowned for his humour in the face of tragedy, but there is a very pronounced lack of it in this instance.
Holub always maint…
