Reviews
"There are very, very few people who occupy the ground that Leonard Cohen walks on." -- Bono "Cohen''s work evinces a different kind of prophetic stance, one marked by humility and an eagerness to carry out someone else''s bidding, to fulfill a mission he ''can''t even locate'' . . . It''s clear that Cohen remained sharp until the very end, and the book, a kind of farewell tribute by the poet-prophet, offers ample evidence of his abiding sense of humor . . . Though he claimed not to know the origins of his poetry nor to be able to locate his mission, what Cohen offered his many fans and followers was the opportunity to partake of the kind of spiritual experience that makes it possible for us to feel, if only for a moment, that we are not alone." -- Shoshana Olidort, Los Angeles Review of Books "Poignant and brave, lit up with flashes of anger, this is a luminous collection and classic Cohen." -- Booklist (starred) "Steeped in somber reckoning, The Flame takes the long view that only age affords . . . Sprinkled with Cohen''s self-portrait sketches, The Flame is full of gestures so intimate it''s almost a voyeuristic experience . . . The work feels both like a final speech and a disrobing. In perusing the sizeable volume, one can''t help but feel privy to something raw and shining, both uncomfortably and movingly revealing, the final laying-bare of a unique chronicler of the human heart." -- BookPage "Fiercely brilliant . . . The Flame provides fascinating insight into Cohen''s unique talent . . . The entire collection is an intricate exploration of the happenings of the human heart, infused with Cohen''s signature themes of longing, love and loss . . . The Flame shows the great power of words to endure long after the person who has written them has passed away, and to offer relief from suffering and elevate the spirits - not only for the writer, but for the reader and listener, too." --Anita Sethi, iNews (U.K.) "A kaleidoscopic archive, a mix-tape of emotions that reveals Cohen''s fears and vulnerability with an unusually raw candour. After 10 books of poetry and two novels, it reminds us that the music man who taught the world to scale the chords of Hallelujah still considered writing his first and ultimate vocation . . . it seems Leonard Cohen has left enough words and music for us to carry on without him." --Brian D. Johnson, Macleans (Canada) "Leonard Cohen offers in The Flame a collection of writing that stands proudly at the end of his body of work . . . Cohen''s poems emerge in The Flame as compelling, mingling all the different mentioned themes with a sense of urgency that lurks just beyond their lightness and somewhat self-deprecating humour. It''s a balance that Cohen has always navigated well, that between seriousness and playfulness, intensity and lightness. His person seeps through the lines and results from these contrasts as incredibly humble, intelligent, and ever surprising . . . The Flame is a work of moving intimacy, a touching final offering of a writer who was devoted to his art until the very end." -- Elisa Sabbadin, Pendora (Canada) " The Flame is Leonard Cohen''s parting gift to the world. And like the best gifts, it''s thoughtful, nicely packaged and contains an element of surprise. Funny, poignant, peculiar and illuminating." -- Pat St. Germain, Windsor Star (Canada) "One can hear [Cohen''s] voice in every reading, yet new meanings emerge by taking time with these words that the sweep of music doesn''t allow." -- José Teodoro, Literary Review of Canada " The Flame is effective and familiar. Even the unfinished work lands well. Cohen''s last text message on November 6 is included. "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God." It''s a line from the Bible, and so specifically Leonard Cohen that it''s devastating." -- Sarah Macdonald, Now Toronto (Canada), "There are very, very few people who occupy the ground that Leonard Cohen walks on." -- Bono "Poignant and brave, lit up with flashes of anger, this is a luminous collection and classic Cohen." -- Booklist (starred), "It's clear that Cohen remained sharp until the very end, and the book, a kind of farewell tribute by the poet-prophet, offers ample evidence of his abiding sense of humor . . . Though he claimed not to know the origins of his poetry nor to be able to locate his mission, what Cohen offered his many fans and followers was the opportunity to partake of the kind of spiritual experience that makes it possible for us to feel, if only for a moment, that we are not alone." -- Shoshana Olidort, Los Angeles Review of Books " In The Flame , an aging artist struggles with questions of death and legacy -- and tries not to take them too seriously, true to his claim never to do so . . . If [this is] how long it takes to say 'so long' to someone beautiful, we'll be listening to Cohen -- still smirking and smiling -- for decades to come, with this collection as our companion." --Hannah Niemeier, The Spectator "Poignant and brave, lit up with flashes of anger, this is a luminous collection and classic Cohen." -- Booklist (starred) "Steeped in somber reckoning, The Flame takes the long view that only age affords . . . Sprinkled with Cohen's self-portrait sketches, The Flame is full of gestures so intimate it's almost a voyeuristic experience . . . The work feels both like a final speech and a disrobing. In perusing the sizeable volume, one can't help but feel privy to something raw and shining, both uncomfortably and movingly revealing, the final laying-bare of a unique chronicler of the human heart." -- BookPage " The Flame provides fascinating insight into Cohen's unique talent . . . The entire collection is an intricate exploration of the happenings of the human heart, infused with Cohen's signature themes of longing, love and loss . . . The Flame shows the great power of words to endure long after the person who has written them has passed away, and to offer relief from suffering and elevate the spirits - not only for the writer, but for the reader and listener, too." --Anita Sethi, iNews (U.K.) "A kaleidoscopic archive, a mix-tape of emotions that reveals Cohen's fears and vulnerability with an unusually raw candour. After 10 books of poetry and two novels, it reminds us that the music man who taught the world to scale the chords of Hallelujah still considered writing his first and ultimate vocation . . . it seems Leonard Cohen has left enough words and music for us to carry on without him." --Brian D. Johnson, Macleans (Canada) "Leonard Cohen offers in The Flame a collection of writing that stands proudly at the end of his body of work . . . Cohen's poems emerge in The Flame as compelling, mingling all the different mentioned themes with a sense of urgency that lurks just beyond their lightness and somewhat self-deprecating humour. It's a balance that Cohen has always navigated well, that between seriousness and playfulness, intensity and lightness. His person seeps through the lines and results from these contrasts as incredibly humble, intelligent, and ever surprising . . . The Flame is a work of moving intimacy, a touching final offering of a writer who was devoted to his art until the very end." -- Elisa Sabbadin, Pendora (Canada), "It's clear that Cohen remained sharp until the very end, and the book, a kind of farewell tribute by the poet-prophet, offers ample evidence of his abiding sense of humor . . . Though he claimed not to know the origins of his poetry nor to be able to locate his mission, what Cohen offered his many fans and followers was the opportunity to partake of the kind of spiritual experience that makes it possible for us to feel, if only for a moment, that we are not alone." -- Shoshana Olidort, Los Angeles Review of Books "[A] grand book . . . elegant . . . Leonard Cohen does not use language to pose, startle or to reinvent. Words are his old comrades, and see him through to the end." -- Kate Kellaway, The Observer (U.K.) " In The Flame , an aging artist struggles with questions of death and legacy -- and tries not to take them too seriously, true to his claim never to do so . . . If [this is] how long it takes to say 'so long' to someone beautiful, we'll be listening to Cohen -- still smirking and smiling -- for decades to come, with this collection as our companion." --Hannah Niemeier, The Spectator (U.K.) "Poignant and brave, lit up with flashes of anger, this is a luminous collection and classic Cohen." -- Booklist (starred) "Steeped in somber reckoning, The Flame takes the long view that only age affords . . . Sprinkled with Cohen's self-portrait sketches, The Flame is full of gestures so intimate it's almost a voyeuristic experience . . . The work feels both like a final speech and a disrobing. In perusing the sizeable volume, one can't help but feel privy to something raw and shining, both uncomfortably and movingly revealing, the final laying-bare of a unique chronicler of the human heart." -- BookPage " The Flame provides fascinating insight into Cohen's unique talent . . . The entire collection is an intricate exploration of the happenings of the human heart, infused with Cohen's signature themes of longing, love and loss . . . The Flame shows the great power of words to endure long after the person who has written them has passed away, and to offer relief from suffering and elevate the spirits - not only for the writer, but for the reader and listener, too." --Anita Sethi, iNews (U.K.) "A kaleidoscopic archive, a mix-tape of emotions that reveals Cohen's fears and vulnerability with an unusually raw candour. After 10 books of poetry and two novels, it reminds us that the music man who taught the world to scale the chords of Hallelujah still considered writing his first and ultimate vocation . . . it seems Leonard Cohen has left enough words and music for us to carry on without him." --Brian D. Johnson, Macleans (Canada) "Leonard Cohen offers in The Flame a collection of writing that stands proudly at the end of his body of work . . . Cohen's poems emerge in The Flame as compelling, mingling all the different mentioned themes with a sense of urgency that lurks just beyond their lightness and somewhat self-deprecating humour. It's a balance that Cohen has always navigated well, that between seriousness and playfulness, intensity and lightness. His person seeps through the lines and results from these contrasts as incredibly humble, intelligent, and ever surprising . . . The Flame is a work of moving intimacy, a touching final offering of a writer who was devoted to his art until the very end." -- Elisa Sabbadin, Pendora (Canada), "There are very, very few people who occupy the ground that Leonard Cohen walks on." -- Bono "Cohen's work evinces a different kind of prophetic stance, one marked by humility and an eagerness to carry out someone else's bidding, to fulfill a mission he 'can't even locate' . . . It's clear that Cohen remained sharp until the very end, and the book, a kind of farewell tribute by the poet-prophet, offers ample evidence of his abiding sense of humor . . . Though he claimed not to know the origins of his poetry nor to be able to locate his mission, what Cohen offered his many fans and followers was the opportunity to partake of the kind of spiritual experience that makes it possible for us to feel, if only for a moment, that we are not alone." -- Shoshana Olidort, Los Angeles Review of Books "Poignant and brave, lit up with flashes of anger, this is a luminous collection and classic Cohen." -- Booklist (starred) "Steeped in somber reckoning, The Flame takes the long view that only age affords . . . Sprinkled with Cohen's self-portrait sketches, The Flame is full of gestures so intimate it's almost a voyeuristic experience . . . The work feels both like a final speech and a disrobing. In perusing the sizeable volume, one can't help but feel privy to something raw and shining, both uncomfortably and movingly revealing, the final laying-bare of a unique chronicler of the human heart." -- BookPage "Fiercely brilliant . . . The Flame provides fascinating insight into Cohen's unique talent . . . The entire collection is an intricate exploration of the happenings of the human heart, infused with Cohen's signature themes of longing, love and loss. If the emotional range is astonishing, the geographical reach is wide, too, for Cohen was a great chronicler of place . . . The Flame shows the great power of words to endure long after the person who has written them has passed away, and to offer relief from suffering and elevate the spirits - not only for the writer, but for the reader and listener, too." --Anita Sethi, iNews (U.K.) " The Flame is effective and familiar. Even the unfinished work lands well. Cohen's last text message on November 6 is included. "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God." It's a line from the Bible, and so specifically Leonard Cohen that it's devastating." -- Sarah Macdonald, Now Toronto (Canada) "Not a collection of finely polished work but a kaleidoscopic archive, a mix-tape of emotions that reveals Cohen's fears and vulnerability with an unusually raw candour. After 10 books of poetry and two novels, it reminds us that the music man who taught the world to scale the chords of Hallelujah still considered writing his first and ultimate vocation . . . it seems Leonard Cohen has left enough words and music for us to carry on without him." --Brian D. Johnson, Macleans (Canada) "Despite being unable to see it to completion and publication, Leonard Cohen offers in The Flame a collection of writing that stands proudly at the end of his body of work . . . Cohen's poems emerge in The Flame as compelling, mingling all the different mentioned themes with a sense of urgency that lurks just beyond their lightness and somewhat self-deprecating humour. It's a balance that Cohen has always navigated well, that between seriousness and playfulness, intensity and lightness. His person seeps through the lines and results from these contrasts as incredibly humble, intelligent, and ever surprising . . . The Flame is a work of moving intimacy, a touching final offering of a writer who was devoted to his art until the very end." -- Elisa Sabbadin, Pendora (Canada), "If you felt Leonard Cohen''s death in 2016 as a personal assault, this book is a posthumous balm . . . All of Cohen''s work has a raw, straight-to-the-heart intensity--reach for this the next time you need inspiration for a wedding toast that will leave them gutted, or any other moment you need a little sustenance for the soul." -- Chloe Schama, Vogue "Cohen''s final volume shows his poetic soul. If you know the man only because of "Hallelujah" or "Suzanne," pick up The Flame and warm yourself within its pages." -- Bethanne Patrick, The Washington Post "It''s clear that Cohen remained sharp until the very end, and the book, a kind of farewell tribute by the poet-prophet, offers ample evidence of his abiding sense of humor . . . Though he claimed not to know the origins of his poetry nor to be able to locate his mission, what Cohen offered his many fans and followers was the opportunity to partake of the kind of spiritual experience that makes it possible for us to feel, if only for a moment, that we are not alone." -- Shoshana Olidort, Los Angeles Review of Books "[A] grand book . . . elegant . . . Leonard Cohen does not use language to pose, startle or to reinvent. Words are his old comrades, and see him through to the end." -- Kate Kellaway, The Observer (U.K.) " In The Flame , an aging artist struggles with questions of death and legacy -- and tries not to take them too seriously, true to his claim never to do so . . . If [this is] how long it takes to say ''so long'' to someone beautiful, we''ll be listening to Cohen -- still smirking and smiling -- for decades to come, with this collection as our companion." --Hannah Niemeier, The Spectator (U.K.) "Poignant and brave, lit up with flashes of anger, this is a luminous collection and classic Cohen." -- Booklist (starred) "Steeped in somber reckoning, The Flame takes the long view that only age affords . . . Sprinkled with Cohen''s self-portrait sketches, The Flame is full of gestures so intimate it''s almost a voyeuristic experience . . . The work feels both like a final speech and a disrobing. In perusing the sizeable volume, one can''t help but feel privy to something raw and shining, both uncomfortably and movingly revealing, the final laying-bare of a unique chronicler of the human heart." -- BookPage " The Flame provides fascinating insight into Cohen''s unique talent . . . The entire collection is an intricate exploration of the happenings of the human heart, infused with Cohen''s signature themes of longing, love and loss . . . The Flame shows the great power of words to endure long after the person who has written them has passed away, and to offer relief from suffering and elevate the spirits - not only for the writer, but for the reader and listener, too." --Anita Sethi, iNews (U.K.) "A kaleidoscopic archive, a mix-tape of emotions that reveals Cohen''s fears and vulnerability with an unusually raw candour. After 10 books of poetry and two novels, it reminds us that the music man who taught the world to scale the chords of Hallelujah still considered writing his first and ultimate vocation . . . it seems Leonard Cohen has left enough words and music for us to carry on without him." --Brian D. Johnson, Macleans (Canada) "Leonard Cohen offers in The Flame a collection of writing that stands proudly at the end of his body of work . . . Cohen''s poems emerge in The Flame as compelling, mingling all the different mentioned themes with a sense of urgency that lurks just beyond their lightness and somewhat self-deprecating humour. It''s a balance that Cohen has always navigated well, that between seriousness and playfulness, intensity and lightness. His person seeps through the lines and results from these contrasts as incredibly humble, intelligent, and ever surprising . . . The Flame is a work of moving intimacy, a touching final offering of a writer who was devoted to his art until the very end." -- Elisa Sabbadin, Pendora (Canada), "There are very, very few people who occupy the ground that Leonard Cohen walks on." -- Bono "Cohen's work evinces a different kind of prophetic stance, one marked by humility and an eagerness to carry out someone else's bidding, to fulfill a mission he 'can't even locate' . . . It's clear that Cohen remained sharp until the very end, and the book, a kind of farewell tribute by the poet-prophet, offers ample evidence of his abiding sense of humor . . . Though he claimed not to know the origins of his poetry nor to be able to locate his mission, what Cohen offered his many fans and followers was the opportunity to partake of the kind of spiritual experience that makes it possible for us to feel, if only for a moment, that we are not alone." -- Shoshana Olidort, Los Angeles Review of Books "Poignant and brave, lit up with flashes of anger, this is a luminous collection and classic Cohen." -- Booklist (starred) "Steeped in somber reckoning, The Flame takes the long view that only age affords . . . Sprinkled with Cohen's self-portrait sketches, The Flame is full of gestures so intimate it's almost a voyeuristic experience . . . The work feels both like a final speech and a disrobing. In perusing the sizeable volume, one can't help but feel privy to something raw and shining, both uncomfortably and movingly revealing, the final laying-bare of a unique chronicler of the human heart." -- BookPage " The Flame is effective and familiar. Even the unfinished work lands well. Cohen's last text message on November 6 is included. "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God." It's a line from the Bible, and so specifically Leonard Cohen that it's devastating." -- Sarah Macdonald, Now Toronto "Despite being unable to see it to completion and publication, Leonard Cohen offers in The Flame a collection of writing that stands proudly at the end of his body of work . . . Cohen's poems emerge in The Flame as compelling, mingling all the different mentioned themes with a sense of urgency that lurks just beyond their lightness and somewhat self-deprecating humour. It's a balance that Cohen has always navigated well, that between seriousness and playfulness, intensity and lightness. His person seeps through the lines and results from these contrasts as incredibly humble, intelligent, and ever surprising . . . The Flame is a work of moving intimacy, a touching final offering of a writer who was devoted to his art until the very end." -- Elisa Sabbadin, Pendora (Canada)
