Death's Snare: Arabic Hunting Poems A Parallel English-Arabic Text

In Death's Snare, James E. Montgomery edits and translates into English sixty-nine Ṭardiyyāt, hunting poems, from the Umayyad and Abbasid eras (seventh to tenth centuries CE), including poems by Dhū l-Rummah and al-Mutanabbī. Most of these poems are translated here for the first time.
The Ṭardiyyāt combined reflections on Fate and mortality and human agency and power with descriptions of the animals caught up in the chase, from goshawks, salukis, falcons and cheetahs, to oryx, onager, gazelles, hares and bustards. The selection also includes several poems about fishing, a pastime that became popular in tenth century Syria.
James E. Montgomery's dynamic yet sympathetic translations highlight these poets' breathtaking familiarity with, and enthusiasm for, the animals described.