Best Edition of Blake?

[The Ol' Man]

Which is the greatest edition of William Blake's complete work?

Hitherto, I have been eyeing from afar both of these:


http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blake-Complete-Longman-Annotated-English/dp/1405832800/ref=cm_cmu_pg__header

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Poems-Penguin-Classics/dp/0140422153/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1317235581&sr=1-1#reader_0140422153

[The Ol' Man]

I would be in debt to a few experienced readers of Blake, or at least an anecdotal response.

[Loganm]

I would probably get the one that is 900-odd pages compared to the other which is only 107.

[stlukesguild]

I'd avoid the Penguin Edition simply because of their usual editorial decision to modernize and standardize spelling and punctuation which takes away from some of the quirkiness of Blake. My personal edition is the hard-cover Everymans Library edition, but I have about 10 or so other volumes of Blake's work.

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

I currently have this (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0500282455/ref=ox_sc_act_title_7?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER) in my cart because it just seems like such a cool book in itself. I love how Blake's paintings are with his poems. A bit pricey, but it looks worth it.

[OrphanPip]

Longman is a textbook press, so it probably contains some editorial material that would come in handy. I'd probably go with that one.

[stlukesguild]

I currently have this (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0500282455/ref=ox_sc_act_title_7?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER) in my cart because it just seems like such a cool book in itself. I love how Blake's paintings are with his poems. A bit pricey, but it looks worth it.

That one looks great. Previous editions of the complete Illuminated books were in black and white on crappy grade paper. I have the Songs, Job, and several other individual volumes in color reproduction... but I will be looking into getting this one as well.

[The Ol' Man]

Thank you for your responses:


Logamn,

That is a misspelling, as there are over a thousand pages in that edition.

stlukesguild,

I could not locate the Everyman edition, unless it is the selected poems you are referring to. Is it so, of Penguin? That might pose an annoyance.
... ''Bald heads forgetful of their sins''...

Mutatis-Mutandi,

That seems a beautiful book but, as mentioned, it asks a heavy pocket to purchase.

OrphanPip,

Yes, I am considering this one. It seems to encompass everything needed, and I am very fond of the purpureal hue of the book itself.
On the inside cover, is that an authentic sketch of Blake as alive, or something later conceived?

http://lh5.ggpht.com/-Sv47Ere6c5E/TPbb8uTw4yI/AAAAAAAABfI/Klj2h5We6as/William%252520Blake%252520Pencil%252520Portrait%25 2520-%252520William%252520Blake%252520-%252520Famous%252520Personalities.jpg

This is the one in the book. Though as I was foraging it out I came upon these others I had not before seen.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_OmspmnkHIn8/TIGNaFXANfI/AAAAAAAAAnk/YCsFvg3EIWk/s1600/Self-Portrait+of+William+Blake.jpg

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01083/education-graphics_1083335a.jpg

http://www.creativereview.co.uk/images/uploads/2008/02/william_blake.jpg


----

I have already read the Oxford selection of his poems, thinking at the time they would suffice for a while, as little as it was, but one would naturally be sick to death fairly soon of having to read portions wrenched out of the long poems.

[Loganm]

Logamn,

That is a misspelling, as there are over a thousand pages in that edition.


Ah, I apologize.

[The Ol' Man]

Ah, I apologize.


Not at all. It was not your mistake.

Have you much experience with the work of Blake? If so, which book are you most fond of?

[stlukesguild]

This is the edition of Blake that I have and use the most when reading him:

http://www.amazon.com/Poems-Prophecies-Everymans-Library-William/dp/0679405526

The book contains pretty much everything by Blake unless one is approaching him as a scholar and needs all the various variants of the texts. It must also be admitted that the notes are limited... but then I have some 10 other books on Blake. The volume that seems almost unrivaled in terms of completion and notes/commentary is this volume:

http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Poetry-Prose-William-Blake/dp/0385152132/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1317482312&sr=1-1

At this point in my reading, I tend to lean toward quality hard-cover editions of my favorite writers where available.

[stlukesguild]

That seems a beautiful book but, as mentioned, it asks a heavy pocket to purchase.

$30 US for a new copy through Amazon Marketplace secondary dealers doesn't seem exorbitant in any way to me... especially considering the wealth of color reproductions. If it were a college text it would be priced at $200 US.:rolleyes5:

[The Ol' Man]

Stlukesguild,

I have such a range of choice now I should be oscillating back and forth trying to make a just appraisal and comparison of each to each. :crash:
But those last two you posted seem brilliant! If there comes a windfall in the next few weeks I think I'll get both of them.

I also came upon this, the which might be of interest to some people:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blake-Dictionary-Ideas-Symbols-William/dp/0874514363/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1317492566&sr=8-1