The Greek poet Kostas Karyotakis (1896–1928) studied law, but took a job as a civil servant and was posted across Greece for work he found tedious and depressing, a fact reflected in the bitter, ironic tone of many of his poems. He published three books of his own poetry and, in addition, translations of poetry -- notably by Heinrich Heine, Charles Baudelaire and Paul Verlaine. His work embodies a turning point in Greek poetry, though his critical acclaim has been largely posthumous. Karyotakis took his own life in Preveza, a town lampooned in his very last poem.