"Odysseus Elytis is a pure and dedicated poet, whose work is abundant, original, and thrilling", wrote Peter Levi when Elytis (1911-96) was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1979. This is a representative selection of his poems, drawn from all periods of his distinguished career, tracing his development from early surrealism, through the dramatic style of The Axion Esti with its blend of spirituality and earthiness, up to his later work.