Prolific poet, dramatist, fabulist, essayist, and novelist Jules Supervielle occupies a singular place in modern French literature by virtue of his simple yet highly evocative poetic style. Remarkable as a chronicle of his frequent travels between France and Uruguay, lands that he envisaged with affection and loyalty, his poetry is also resonant with voices that evoke seas, pampas--vast and treeless South American plains--yearnings for self-discovery, and ultimately, the need to understand the passing of time and one's place in an evolving world.

Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, on 16 January 1884, to Jules Supervielle père, descendant of Béarnais stock (from the Béarn region of the French Pyrénées) and partner with his brother, Bernard Supervielle, in the banking firm of Supervielle of Montevideo, and Maria Munyo, of Basque origin, Supervielle began what became a truly peripatetic life by sailing to Marseilles with...