Paul Celan

Paul Celan was born in Romania in 1920. He was interned in a German labor camp during WWII; after the war he went to Paris and earned his living as a writer and translator of French and Russian poetry. His first books, Poppy and Memory and From Threshold to Threshold made him one of the most celebrated poets in Europe. During the 40s, 50s, and 60s he was much published and honored with awards and prizes. His work has been widely translated in many languages. He committed suicide by jumping into the Seine River in Paris in 1970.