Customer Reviews

The Art and Craft of Poetry

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've read many books on writing poetry and Bugeja's ART AND CRAFT OF POETRY is the best among them. He offers the clearest explanations of how meter, line length, and rhyme influence tone and meaning in a poem. His section on forms is absolutely the most comprehensive, explaining how to make formal verse into GOOD poetry beyond simply following the technical rules. Suggestions include writing the envoi first in a sestina, shaping meaning in a pantoum, and how to make the repeating lines of a villanelle do multiple tasks. I agree with the reviewer who said she'd want this book if stranded on a island. I can't read more than a page without stopping to write and I know that I've produced several publishable poems. I also know what I can do to revise poems that I knew didn't work, but wasn't sure how to fix them before reading this book. Excellent! I couldn't be more enthusiastic.

Sonnet, iambic pentameter, the villanelle. . . .and free form. How can a non-poet form reasonable and enjoyable poetry? This book is the answer especially if you appreciate poetry and want to learn some forms to test your ideas. This is the book. It's broken down into 3 sections. The first is a non-intimidating idea section which allows the reader to dip into his/her unconscious and come up with tons of ideas for poems and prose. You don't start off with a poem until the next two chapters where you take ideas from the idea file and utilize them. I mean, who knew how important a very effective title was to poetry, poets perhaps? The last chapter discusses the particular forms and how you can revise, yes you can revise, your poems to work into a form. This book's format was incredibly enjoyable. After reading it once, I had several poems that I was happy with. When I read it again, yes, this is definately a book to read more than once, I will get more ambitious and focus on forms. This first time I just had fun. I can see why it is recommended by teachers for students. Or, like me, you can teach yourself.

Michael Bugeja's book is geared toward writers of any caliber, especially those who do not appreciate scholarly approaches to poetry composition. This text is hand's on and continues to be a best-seller after almost a decade because the instruction is based on effective teaching, rhymed and free verse approaches, and several levels of exercises at the end of each chapter. The work also comes with an extensive anthology exposing the reader to poetry from Shakespeare to the current era.

If I were sent to an island to live alone and could bring only three things with me, they would be a gross of pens, a case of paper and The Art and Craft of Poetry. Michael immediately immerses the reader into the world of poetry. He starts at the beginning, with the issue most frustrating to beginning poets - What do I write about? By the end of Chapter 1 the reader is armed with enough ideas and resources to last several lifetimes. He then takes you on a brief but meaningful tour of poetry genres, complete with exercises. By the time you have completed these exercises you realize he has not only presented genres, but forms as well. He then discusses the forms of poetry in greater depth, both historic and contemporary. Even if you never plan to write a poem, this book will broaden your understanding and appreciation of this beloved and increasingly popular form of literature.

There's no getting around it. Michael Bugeja knows his stuff. This book is an incredibly thorough survey of the different types of poetry being published today, with many examples of each kind as well as general advice about the creation of such poems. I enjoyed the various exercises at the end of each chapter that allow you to continue using the book as you progress as a poet. The book is well written, straightforward and has made me a better poet.

This how-to-write poetry text is good to begin with and good to grow with. Each chapter is followed by a brief but diverse selection of poems that illustrate the principles discussed in the chapter. Suggested assignments are provided at levels one, two, and three so that students can work through the book three times at increasing levels of sophistication. My sophomore creative writing poetry students begin with this text.

The Art and Craft of Poetry is an excellent book for both beginners and advanced writers of poetry and the exercises are geared for both. From how to generate ideas to crafting and writing poetry, this book is the one that I will use frequently as an educational tool.

If I had this book and my Kindle I could be happy. If you have tried your hand at poetry but have always felt it was out of reach this book is for you. The formatting for the Kindle is perfect and works great. Its not a need to buy, it is a must buy!
We need a special 6 stars for some books, this is one.

If this title is the assigned reading for a poetry class, do not buy this Kindle Edition as I did. As the author states, it is a newly revised and updated edition (2010). It was only after the class began that I discovered this is a totally different book, a stripped-down version of the original and useless in conjunction with the course. I had to buy an out-of-print copy in order to follow the curriculum. They're both fine books and Professor Bugeja knows his subject. Given a choice, unless you're only interested in an e-book, get the original, there's a lot more to it.

This book really helped me learn what poetry is. The language and history of poetry. If you are a poet and want to learn how to deliver it more efeectively, please read this book. Michael Bujega knows his stuff!!

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