Poetry Bookclub 2

[quasimodo1]

In an attempt to bring this discussion group back to life, let me start with some suggestions. If anyone interested has any others, please post them. The choices are Billy Collins (The Trouble with Poetry, 2005), Sylvia Plath (Crossing the Water, 1971, Theodore Roethke (Sequence, Sometimes Metaphysical Poems, 1963), Langston Hughes (The Panther & the Lash, 1992), and Marianne Moore (Illusion is More Precise than Precision: The Poetry of Marianne Moore, 1992). If this shows any signs of life, there will be a vote/poll.

[Dark Muse]

I would love to do Sylvia Plath

[JBI]

I would love to do Roethke, and perhaps Collins, but not crazy about the others. Maybe we can add a few more multicultural ones for the final poll? I think the only one I haven't read in collected works is Collins.

[Jozanny]

Billy Collins? Isn't that just a shade on this side of pandering?

[stlukesguild]

I could go for Roethke... perhaps Marianne Moore (although Elizabeth Bishop would be better...)

[JBI]

How about adding Octavio Paz, Giussepe Ungaretti, and Anna Akhmatova to the list, or some other voices? It seems blasphemous to have a list of all Americans.

[Jozanny]

I would not want to turn this into a free for all, of course, but in my limited aesthetic opinion, Judith Johnson is more interesting than Collins, fresher than Plath, and more undervalued.

Ice Lizards is not easy to get ones hands on, however.

[Dark Muse]

I could go for Roethke... perhaps Marianne Moore (although Elizabeth Bishop would be better...)

Bishop would be my second choice to Plath

[quasimodo1]

Seems like we are adding Octavio Paz, Giussepe Ungaretti, Anna Akhmatova and Judith Johnson to the preliminary list. If anyone has specific collections in mind, please post them. Let me post some collections by these poets. q1

[quasimodo1]

And Elizabeth Bishop...also in preliminary list.

[JBI]

http://www.amazon.com/Selected-Poems...ref=pd_sim_b_1

http://www.amazon.com/Tale-Two-Garde...874502&sr=8-13

http://www.amazon.com/Selected-Poems...9874698&sr=1-4

All those are within modest lengths, the longest being Ungaretti, though he is cut in half because it is a bilingual edition.

[quasimodo1]

Poetry Bookclub 2

Wednesday, August 27, 2008
6:57 PM

Authors and collections

Billy Collins THE TROUBLE WITH POETRY 2005

Sylvia Plath CROSSING THE WATER 1971

Theodore Roethke SEQUENCE: SOMETIMES METAPHYSICAL POEMS 1963

Langston Hughes THE PANTHER & THE LASH 1992

Marianne Moore ILLUSION IS MORE PRECISE THAN PRECISION: THE POETRY OF MARIANNE MOORE 1992

Giusseppe Ungaretti SELECTED POEMS: A BILINGUAL EDITION 2002

THE PROMISED LAND 1950

Octavio Paz A TALE OF TWO GARDENS: POEMS FROM INDIA 1952-1995 (last copyright by Octavio Paz and Elizabeth Bishop, 1972)

ARBOL ADENTRO (A Tree Within) 1987

Anna Akhmatova SELECTED POEMS (Penquin Classics) 1985

TWENTY POEMS (translated by Jane Keynon) 1985

Judith Johnson THE ICE LIZARD: POEMS, 1977-1988 1992

Elizabeth Bishop POEMS: NORTH AND SOUTH- A COLD SPRING 1955

[Virgil]

Quasi, I forget how this works. Wll we be voting for one of those books?

As a side note, I think Theodore Roethke is so under rated. I will vote for him.

[quasimodo1]

hey Virgil, I think we have to reduce this list to five for a vote. Roethke is great but so are all of these. Akhmatova has my vote, followed by Marianne Moore and Ungaretti.

[Virgil]

hey Virgil, I think we have to reduce this list to five for a vote. Roethke is great but so are all of these. Akhmatova has my vote, followed by Marianne Moore and Ungaretti.

So what am I supposed to do, pick two others? I'll go with Eizabeth Bishop and Marianne Moore.