Poetry Books
recommended by poets and literary scholars
Last updated: December 11, 2024
Whether you are after contemporary poetry collections or the earliest poems ever written, Five Books has recommendations for poetry books to read for both study and pleasure.
Notable Poetry Books of 2024: The Inaugural PEN Heaney Prize Shortlist, recommended by Paula Meehan
Seamus Heaney argued that poetry might not change the world, but it could change our perception of the world. Now, a new prize set up in his name seeks to honour exciting new work with a political edge. Poet Paula Meehan, one of the judges of the inaugural PEN Heaney Prize, talks us through their shortlist of six poetry books and pamphlets we should be reading in 2024.
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Poetry of the First World War: An Anthology
ed. Tim Kendall -
2
From the Line: Scottish War Poetry 1914-1945
ed. David Goldie and Roderick Watson -
3
The Penguin Book of First World War Poetry
ed. George Walter -
4
The War Poems of Wilfred Owen
by Wilfred Owen, ed. John Stallworthy -
5
The Annotated Collected Poems
by Edward Thomas, ed. Edna Longley
The best books on Poetry of the First World War, recommended by Guy Cuthbertson
The best books on Poetry of the First World War, recommended by Guy Cuthbertson
Poetry written during the First World War has remained prominent in the public consciousness for more than a century; writers like Wilfred Owen, Siegfried Sassoon, and Robert Graves are still commonly studied in British schools and universities. Here, Guy Cuthbertson—literary scholar and author of an acclaimed biography of Owen—selects five books to give an overview of the poetry produced during the Great War.
Frieda Hughes recommends the best Poetry Collections
Wit, intelligence, compassion and an ability to shock are the qualities valued by the poet, author and painter, who talks about taking advice from Dad (Ted Hughes) and why she didn’t write for ten years
The best books on Virgil, recommended by Sarah Ruden
Virgil is one of the most influential poets in the history of Western literature. Here, another poet, Sarah Ruden, talks about the challenges of translating the Aeneid and why, although we know little about Virgil as a man, his great poem’s take on the violence and power struggles it depicts is deeply ambivalent.
The best books on Classical Chinese Poetry, recommended by Qiu Xiaolong
The translator, poet and author of the best-selling Inspector Chen series, Qiu Xiaolong, says there is no one road when it comes to translating Chinese poetry. He chooses five anthologies that capture its magic.
The best books on Poetry, recommended by Sinéad Morrissey
The award-winning Northern Irish poet reveals why the inimitable Sylvia Plath is not always a good influence on young poets and why sublimation of the self is sometimes better than self-expression
The Best Poetry Books of 2020, recommended by Alexandra Harris
Each year, the judges for the Forward Prize select a shortlist of the best new poetry books. In 2020, they chose five collections ranging in tone from epic love songs to domestic surrealism. Alexandra Harris, chair of the judges, tells us what they admired about each book.
Sylvia Plath Books, recommended by Tim Kendall
Though biographical sensation has often diverted attention from her work, Sylvia Plath remains one of the finest lyric poets of the twentieth century, argues Professor Tim Kendall, Academic Director of Arts and Culture at Exeter and author of Sylvia Plath: A Critical Study. Here, he recommends the best places to start (or return to) with Plath, from a fresh look at Ariel to illuminating an oft-overlooked, brilliant appendix in her unabridged journals.
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Shakespeare's Sonnets
by Katherine Duncan-Jones & William Shakespeare -
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The Art of Shakespeare's Sonnets
by Helen Vendler & William Shakespeare -
3
All the Sonnets of Shakespeare
by Paul Edmonson, Stanley Wells & William Shakespeare -
4
The Afterlife of Shakespeare's Sonnets
by Jane Kingsley-Smith -
5
Nets
by Jen Bervin -
6
Lucy Negro, Redux
by Caroline Randall Williams
The best books on Shakespeare’s Sonnets, recommended by Scott Newstok
The best books on Shakespeare’s Sonnets, recommended by Scott Newstok
The beauty of Shakespeare’s sonnets speaks to us down the centuries, their lines peaking out at us from the titles of famous books or enjoying outings at weddings or other romantic occasions. But they were not always regarded as perfectly-formed jewels, and the relationships they portray not as conventional as many of us presume. Here, Shakespeare scholar Scott Newstok talks us through books that help us learn more about Shakespeare’s sonnets, from the best introduction to the poems for students through to their afterlife and recent creative interpretations.
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William Wordsworth: The Major Works
by Stephen Gill (editor) -
2
Samuel Taylor Coleridge: The Major Works
by H. J. Jackson (Editor) -
3
Willam Blake: Selected Poetry
by William Blake -
4
Percy Bysshe Shelley: The Major Works
by Michael O'Neill (Editor) & Zachary Leader (Editor) -
5
John Keats: The Major Works
by Elizabeth Cook (Editor)
The Greatest Romantic Poems, recommended by Gillen D'Arcy Wood
The Greatest Romantic Poems, recommended by Gillen D'Arcy Wood
Freud said he owed them everything and even people who have never read a poem in their lives speak their language today. Gillen D’Arcy Wood, Professor of Environmental Humanities and English at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, explains who the Romantic poets were and recommends five of the greatest Romantic poems.