Top 5 Poetry Books To Add To Your TBR
Happy World Poetry Day!
“World Poetry Day is held each year on March 21st to celebrate “The unique ability of poetry to capture the creative spirit of the human mind.” It was founded in 1999 by UNESCO in the hopes of promoting poetry as a way to communicate across borders and cultural differences.”
MBC wanted to highlight important poetry books that have stood the test of time. Instead of short stories and novels, poems have been short anecdotes and powerful messages that have travelled from country to country. Writers cleverly composed poems that had more than one meaning but also hidden messages so the meaning would be up to interpretation. The beauty of poetry is that the passages can be short and sweet or long and meaningful. Either way, there is an expression of emotions linked to beautiful imagery and a reflection of one’s worldview.
The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson
Only eleven of Emily Dickinson’s poems were published before she died in 1886; the startling originality of her work doomed it to obscurity in her lifetime. Early posthumously published collections of them featuring liberally “edited” versions of the poems- did not fully and accurately represent Dickinson’s bold experiments in prosody, her tragic vision, and the range of her intellectual and emotional explorations. Not until the 1955 publication of The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson, a three-volume critical edition compiled by Thomas H. Johnson, were readers able for the first time to assess, understand, and appreciate the whole of Dickinson’s extraordinary poetic genius.
Shakespeare’s Sonnets
The Arden Shakespeare has long been acclaimed as the established scholarly edition of Shakespeare's work. Now being totally reedited for the third time, Arden editions offer the very best in contemporary scholarship. Each volume provides a clear and authoritative text, edited to the highest standards; detailed textual notes and commentary on the same page of the text; full contextual, illustrated introduction, including an in-depth survey of critical and performance approaches to the play; and selected bibliography.
Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
A collection of quintessentially American poems, the seminal work of one of the most influential writers of the nineteenth century.
Ariel by Sylvia Plath
When Sylvia Plath died, she not only left behind a prolific life but also her unpublished literary masterpiece, Ariel. Her husband, Ted Hughes, brought the collection to life in 1966, and its publication garnered worldwide acclaim. This collection showcases the beloved poet’s brilliant, provoking, and always moving poems, including "Ariel" and once again shows why readers have fallen in love with her work throughout the generations.
The Waste Land by T.S. Eliot
When The Waste Land was published in 1922, initial reaction to the poem was decidedly negative. Critics attacked the poem's "kaleidoscopic" design, and nearly everyone disagreed furiously about its meaning. The poem was even rumored to a hoax. Eventually, though, The Waste Land went on to become what many regard as the most influential poem written in English in the twentieth century.
Have you read any of the poetry books listed above? If you have, let us know which one is your favourite! If you have any recommendations drop them in the comments below.
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