The book "Cent mille miliards de poémes" (1960) is a completely ingenious and original work. Each page of the book contains a sonnet fragmented into fourteen lines, cut as if they were separate band-aids, allowing the unrestricted combination of the beginning or end of one line, with the beginning or end of the other lines.
It is fascinating to think that the possibilities of combination are remarkably wide, with a total of 100 billion different poems. In fact, it has been said that this book would contain more poems than any state library.
The author, Raymond Queneau, created this work with the aim of demonstrating that language has an inexhaustible creative potential. This is how, taking a page at random and one of the possible combinations, can result not only in a poem with meaning, but also in a masterpiece of poetry.
The total number of possible combinations contained in the book is 10 to 14, that is, one hundred billion different poems. Photo: Twitter.
A work of art
The book has been praised by critics and readers alike, and has become a cult work, not only in France but also around the world. Some see it as a linguistic game, others as an innovative display of creativity, and for others as a modern work of art.
In any case, "Cent mille miliards de poémes" is an impressive book in its originality and in its ability to inspire people to think beyond the conventional boundaries of literature.
Throughout his career, Queneau has left memorable phrases that have been highly quoted by readers and critics in the French literary world. Among them, we can mention: "words are foreign materials and should be treated with respect", "everything is possible in poetry"; "It is imagination that saves us, not reality," among others.
These quotes are a sample of Queneau's creative and revolutionary thinking regarding the use of language and literature, and also account for his endless curiosity and love for words. Surely, Queneau would be delighted to know that his book "Cent mille miliards de poémes" continues to inspire and fascinate readers many years after its publication.
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