Poetry. John Ash could be the best English poet of his generation. Yet somehow it seems inappropriate to play the old rating game with him. Ash lives as an expatriate in Istanbul, a vantage point from which the machinations of 'po-biz' must seem very far away. And that distance isn't merely a geographical fact but a condition of his work--Peter Campion. John Ash's work is marked by clarity and precision together with a deep humor equaled by few of his peers. Ash was born in Manchester, England, but was for many years a resident of New York before becoming a permanent resident of Istanbul. His poetry draws heavily on Byzantine and Turkish history and culture, areas in which he is a recognized expert.