Poetry Bookclub

[JBI]

Any takers for a poetry book club? We could nominate and vote on potential anthologies, then all read and discuss them. any Takers?

[Virgil]

I participate on a lot, but I might participate in this. Any interest in TS Eliot?

[Nossa]

I'd love to take part in this, but I have exams these days, untill June 4th, hopefully I won't be too late by then.

[JBI]

Hmm, I'm not sure if Eliot would be a good starting spot (to make it more inclusive for non-familiar poetry readers), but something like Wordsworth may be a better starting ground. We would need to nominate, then vote.

[Quark]

but something like Wordsworth may be a better starting ground.

I'm already in far too many book clubs, but if you picked Wordsworth I don't know how I'd stay away.

[JBI]

I'm already in far too many book clubs, but if you picked Wordsworth I don't know how I'd stay away.

Poetry book clubs are easier. Anthologies are much shorter than novels.

[quasimodo1]

Poetry book club sounds fascinating; perhaps the pace and how to come to a consensus on any given book would be something any participants might vote on. JBI would be choosing the first group of options perhaps? q1

[Il Penseroso]

I'd be down with participating. Or, I'd at least try to be down. I probably won't have much access to the internet in the near future (I'm on in my uni library now), but I'd do my best, and I do really think this is a good idea and should be fun.


How about Robert Browning? (the Victorians are probably the most underrated bunch on this forum). I recently purchased a collection including him, Tennyson, and Arnold, and though they are not represented in full there's probably just enough to keep me interested and give me a chance to participate.

[Virgil]

I'm in for just about any poet. How do we choose? Should we just let JBI decide or should we vote?

[JBI]

I'm for voting, I could perhaps supply 5 or so options if anyone is interested though.

[Virgil]

I'm for voting, I could perhaps supply 5 or so options if anyone is interested though.

Ok with me.

[JBI]

Now the real question really is, whether this should be modern poetry, or poetry in general.

[Quark]

I'm for voting, I could perhaps supply 5 or so options if anyone is interested though.

That would work well, I think. Should we nominate poets, or do you have some in mind already?


Now the real question really is, whether this should be modern poetry, or poetry in general.

I'm partial to 19thC British poetry, but I would be willing to read anything.

[symphony]

Great idea. :)
I'm tied up till July too. But once started, a bookclub wont just fade away. :D

[quasimodo1]

To Virgil, JBI and Il Penseroso and anyone joining this discussion: I like the choices being kicked around like Eliot by Virgil and Browning by Il Penseroso, but think that the book chosen ought to be available e-text wise to avoid any financial hardship for anyone. Or not. If JBI has a poet to start this up, fine also since its his baby. Perhaps we could approach the thread as a long term effort, maybe limiting by date. All good to go. q1

[JBI]

How about Yeats' Wild Swans at Coole?

[quasimodo1]

That works for me. Solves the problem of traditional vs. contemporary.

[quasimodo1]

The Wild Swans at Coole
In Memory of Major Robert Gregory
An Irish Airman foresees his Death
Men improve with the Years
The Collar-bone of a Hare
Under the Round Tower
Solomon to Sheba
The Living Beauty
A Song
To a Young Beauty
To a Young Girl
The Scholars
Tom O’Roughley
The Sad Shepherd
Lines written in Dejection
The Dawn
On Woman
The Fisherman
The Hawk
Memory
Her Praise
The People
His Phoenix
A Thought from Propertius
Broken Dreams
A Deep-sworn Vow
Presences
The Balloon of the Mind
To a Squirrel at Kyle-na-gno
On being asked for a War Poem
In Memory of Alfred Pollexfen
Upon a Dying Lady
Ego Dominus Tuus
A Prayer on going into my House
The Phases of the Moon
The Cat and the Moon
The Saint and the Hunchback
Two Songs of a Fool
Another Song of a Fool
The Double Vision of Michael Robartes

[Rakthor]

This sounds great! I've got finals coming up, but I can spare a little time to read some poetry. I'll probably join once it starts up.

[Virgil]

OK. How about a week to read as much as we can and then start?

[JBI]

Alright.
IF someone wants to start a poll thread...

[Il Penseroso]

So was the Yeats volume decided on then, or is it still open?

[JBI]

I think we should go with The Wild Swans of Coole, but if you have another suggestion.

[DapperDrake]

I would love to join in but I'm afraid I'm very ignorant of the art of poetry, I love reading it - though I haven't read much - but I'm not sure how much I could contribute to a discussion.

Is Yeats decided on? It's just that I have lots of poetry but nothing by Yeats :(

If its not decided could we have a poll of authors?

:) I have these:

T.S. Eliot
Thomas Hardy
Byron
Keats
Shelley
Coleridge
Tennyson
Cowper

Also I have a suggestion/request: Discuss one poem at a time rather than reading a bunch then discussing them all. A poem a day maybe :) its just that I'd find a volume daunting unless we took it in bite size chunks.

[Il Penseroso]

Since no one has started a poll I'm going to assume we can start with the Yeats. Are we posting in this thread?

I'm going to go get a Yeats collection from the library now. (an option for those, like myself, who are poor and don't already have this one)

[JBI]

We need a new thread, and we have to agree on time.

[sofia82]

It is a great idea and i think as JBI suggests this, the first suggestion will be his.

And a suggestion: it can be done according to literary periods, genres, or poets. Now it is up to all those interested in this club.

[Quark]

We need a new thread, and we have to agree on time.

I'll start the thread if you want. That's really a small favor to ask, but I need to know a few things before I put it up.

1) Are we discussing a poem, collection, or the entire body of work from Yeats?

2) Should we start a different thread for each poet/poem we do?

3) When should I put up the thread? I can do it right now, but do we have enough people to start, yet?

[JBI]

I'll start the thread if you want. That's really a small favor to ask, but I need to know a few things before I put it up.

1) Are we discussing a poem, collection, or the entire body of work from Yeats?

2) Should we start a different thread for each poet/poem we do?

3) When should I put up the thread? I can do it right now, but do we have enough people to start, yet?
Go ahead and put it up for now, with the whole Wild Swans at Coole Collection being discussed, not just one poem. I guess we'll decide later if we have exhausted it, or just move onto a new anthology in a couple weeks. Yes, separate thread for each discussion.

[sofia82]

Isn't it better we discuss one poem then go to another, or we are going to discuss the whole book?

[JBI]

We'll discuss the book by discussing individual poems.

[Pensive]

To Virgil, JBI and Il Penseroso and anyone joining this discussion: I like the choices being kicked around like Eliot by Virgil and Browning by Il Penseroso, but think that the book chosen ought to be available e-text wise to avoid any financial hardship for anyone.

Yeah, I second this.

Would be quite free in summer holidays (June-August). Sounds like a good idea, I hope I can join in.

[Virgil]

So have we decided which book/author? How do we start?

[JBI]

I think we should start with The Wild Swans at Coole. If anyone objects, I guess speak up and offer a better suggestion (note, lets try to keep this in the public domain).

[Dharmabeat]

I'd like to join in, as I'd like to broaden my horizons! I've never been a huge poetry fan, then again I've never given poetry a chance bar Robert Frost which I've had to study for A level... sort of put me off poetry.

But I think now would be a good time for me to try and appreciate some good poetry.

[Quark]

Go ahead and put it up for now, with the whole Wild Swans at Coole Collection being discussed, not just one poem. I guess we'll decide later if we have exhausted it, or just move onto a new anthology in a couple weeks. Yes, separate thread for each discussion.

I started the thread yesterday (http://www.online-literature.com/forums/showthread.php?t=35055).

[quasimodo1]

This discussion will have to focus on one poem as topic, but digressions and connection with others would be part of the picture as well?.? Anyone care to choose the first horse?

[Devil Child]

How aboout discussing Dante 's poetry? He's fun yet confusing.

[quasimodo1]

To Devil Child: I think "The Wild Swans at Coole" is the collection up for discussion. By Yeats.

[Phoebe E]

This sounds like a good idea...I was reading some of the poets listed for consideration and I could not help but notice that female poets were remarkably absent. How about after Yeats we include something by Margaret Atwood, Sylvia Plath or perhaps Anne Sexton????

[quasimodo1]

My first choice would be Medbh McGuckian, female Irish poet who writes in English and Gaelic but she is very contemporary and hard to post with the copyright restrictions. Yeats will be a fine choice.