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Loading... 100 Best-Loved Poems (Dover Thrift Editions) (original 1995; edition 1995)by Philip Smith (Editor)A good selection of poems covering 600 years. Of course, not everyone's best-loved poem or poet will be included, but it covers many styles of poetry. The poets in this collection are all English speaking which leaves many out many great poets and their work. Dover collections tend to be introductions to the subject or author they cover. Readers who regularly read poetry or already have their favorites will find this collection very incomplete. However, for those interested in poetry this is a great introduction. I like it as an ebook because I can keep it on my phone and randomly read a good poem anytime. Christopher Marlowe has me awed about his poetry. He was killed at a very young age of 29 which I shall be soon. So his poetry felt terribly personal to me. Also, I am a big Shakespeare buff. Marlowe in a deliciously lovely poem titled The Passionate Shepherd to his Love asks her in a simple line to, Come live with me and be my Love It sounds almost ethereal and enchanting in a voice that I read in and imagine to be Marlowe's. A deep, resonating baritone which when heard melts even the most hardened hearts. I particularly love the simple imagery he describes about sitting on rocks and seeing the shepherds feed their flocks. I am so very deeply smitten with Marlowe's words. Also, this collection has a lovely composition of ballads. Poems from most of my favorite poets like Cummings, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Yeats, Pound, Marianne Moore, Dylan Thomas have been included and for this reason, this book is definitely a little special. Nothing like reading Dylan Thomas on a rainy night. I spent a restful rainy Sunday evening savoring the wonderful words, phrases and lyrical joy of reading this marvelous compilation of poetry. Beginning with The Ballad of Lord Randal through Dylan Thomas’ Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, I was transformed to a world where writing was concise, crisp, clear and every word was laden with meaning. As the rain splashed on the sky light in the living room and the thunder clapped, I sat in an overstuffed chair, cup of tea in hand and delighted in the images that gently rolled through my mind. Finding some of these poems anew was as cleansing as the spring rain. For instance, as I read A.E. Housman’s To an Athlete Dying Young, I saw Isak Dinesen, portrayed by Meryl Streep, as she stands at the graveside of Dennys Finch Hatton in the movie Out of Africa. The time you won your town the race We chaired you through the market-place; Man and boy stood cheering by, And home we brought you shoulder-high. To-day, the road all runners come, Shoulder-high we bring you home, And set you at your threshold down, Townsman of a stiller town. Smart lad, to slip betimes away From fields were glory does not stay And early though the laurel grows It withers quicker than the rose. Eyes the shady night has shut Cannot see the record cut, And silence sounds no worse than cheers After earth has stopped the ears: Now you will not swell the rout Of lads that wore their honours out, Runners whom renown outran And the name died before the man. So set, before its echoes fade, The fleet foot on the sill of shade, And hold to the low lintel up The still-defended challenge-cup. And round that early-laurelled head Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead, And find unwithered on its curls The garland briefer than a girl's. No one in their right mind would argue the worth of the poems in this volume. If you’re interested in the verse that has shaped our culture, this is a great place to start. I learned something about myself in reading this book, though—I prefer things in their context.: * I’d rather listen to a representative album from an artist than a best-of CD. * I prefer Biblical Theology to Systematic Theology because it allows each author to speak in his own voice. * I would much rather have read these poems in their original context than ripped from their homes and forced into a best-of list. This book is great—for a compilation. My next poetry read, though, will be the collected works of Robert Frost. A collection of well-known poems by well-known authors which works well if you are just looking to acquaint yourself with poetry. However, some of the selections disappointed me and many of them left little to be analyzed. Not great for any Lit. major, but for a Dover Thrift of $1.25 I can't complain TOO much. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)821.008Literature English & Old English literatures English poetry English poetry {by more than one author} Modified standard subdivisions Collections of literary texts not limited by time period or kind of formLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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Beginning with The Ballad of Lord Randal through Dylan Thomas’ Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, I was transformed to a world where writing was concise, crisp, clear and every word was laden with meaning.
As the rain splashed on the sky light in the living room and the thunder clapped, I sat in an overstuffed chair, cup of tea in hand and delighted in the images that gently rolled through my mind. Finding some of these poems anew was as cleansing as the spring rain.
For instance, as I read A.E. Housman’s To an Athlete Dying Young, I saw Isak Dinesen, portrayed by Meryl Streep, as she stands at the graveside of Dennys Finch Hatton in the movie Out of Africa.
The time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high.
To-day, the road all runners come,
Shoulder-high we bring you home,
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.
Smart lad, to slip betimes away
From fields were glory does not stay
And early though the laurel grows
It withers quicker than the rose.
Eyes the shady night has shut
Cannot see the record cut,
And silence sounds no worse than cheers
After earth has stopped the ears:
Now you will not swell the rout
Of lads that wore their honours out,
Runners whom renown outran
And the name died before the man.
So set, before its echoes fade,
The fleet foot on the sill of shade,
And hold to the low lintel up
The still-defended challenge-cup.
And round that early-laurelled head
Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead,
And find unwithered on its curls
The garland briefer than a girl's. ( )