“A dry Bob” seems to have been then-current slang for intercourse without ejaculation (“lack of moisture”). This isolated stanza has nothing to do with the poem, but it epitomizes Byron’s utter lack of reverence for anything-even himself-and therefore sets the tone of what follows, even if it is divorced from the content.Īfter Byron’s third stanza, which begins with “You, Bob! are rather insolent, you know” and ends “… because you soar too high, Bob, / And fall, for lack of moisture quite a dry, Bob!,” Asimov, who wears the many hats of historian, etymologist, lexicographer, literary critic, and cultural commentator, adds an entertaining and educational clarifier: So that I seem to stand upon the ceiling)Īnd so-for God’s sake-hock and soda water! I would to heaven that I were so much clay,Īs I am blood, bone, marrow, passion, feeling-īecause at least the past were passed away-Īnd for the future-(but I write this reeling,

To be sure, Asimov takes no prisoners with his annotations - or, rather, plays along with Byron - beginning with the opening verse, which reads: What makes the pairing especially poetic is that, besides their match of cultural stature, Asimov and Glaser have in common a certain sensibility, a shared faith in the human spirit - Asimov with his religion of humanism and Glaser with his belief in the kindness of the universe.

The lavish thousand-page tome Asimov’s Annotated Don Juan ( public library) presents Byron’s Don Juan - one of the great epic poems in the English language, launching an audacious and timeless attack on greed, complacency, and hypocrisy - with annotations by beloved writer Isaac Asimov, a man of strong opinions and a large heart, and breathlessly gorgeous pen-and-ink illustrations by none other than Milton Glaser, creator of the iconic I♥NY logo and celebrated as the greatest graphic designer of our time. But arguably the best such volume is a rare vintage gem published by Doubleday - which also commissioned Salvador Dalí’s illustrations for the essays of Montaigne and Edward Gorey’s paperback covers for literary classics - in 1972. Despite having fathered Ada Lovelace, the world’s first computer programmer, Lord Byron (January 22, 1788–April 19, 1824) is best remembered for his poetry, countless collections of which have been published in the centuries since he put ink to paper.

George byron don juan