The bestselling author of Under the Tuscan Sun brings poetry out of the classroom and into the homes of everyday readers.
Before she fell in love with Tuscany, Frances Mayes fell in love with verse. After publishing five books of poetry and teaching creative writing for more than twenty-five years, Mayes is no stranger to the subject. In The Discovery of Poetry, an accessible "field guide" to reading and writing poetry, she shares her passion with readers. Beginning with basic terminology and techniques, from texture and sound to rhyme and repetition, Mayes shows how focusing on one aspect of a poem can help you to better understand, appreciate, and enjoy the reading and writing experience. In addition to many creative and helpful composition ideas, following each lyrical and lively discussion is a thoughtful selection of poems. With its wonderful anthology from Shakespeare to Jamaica Kinkaid, The Discovery of Poetry is an insightful, invaluable guide to what Mayes calls "the natural pleasures of language-a happiness we were born to have."
Best known as the author of Under the Tuscan Sun, Bella Tuscany and other memoirs of life in the Italian province, Frances Mayes until recently chaired of San Francisco State's creative writing department, and has published five books of poems. The Discovery of Poetry: A Field Guide to Reading and Writing Poems is the product of all her reading and writing experiences, with chapters on "Meter," "Rhyme and Repetition," "Subject and Style," covering all the bases with plenty of canonical exemplars.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Most readers know Mayes as the best-selling author of Under the Tuscan Sun, but she is also the author of five books of poetry and a former creative writing instructor. In this guide to reading and writing verse, Mayes's goal is to illustrate that poetry is accessible and fun rather than intimidating. Discussing rhyme, free verse, choice of subject, and style, she explains, in plain language, how poetry works. To prove her point, she includes hundreds of examples of poetry from different time periods. The chapter on interpretation, including a student's sample essay, may be helpful to students who are usually mortified by assignments that require an interpretation of a poem. The final chapter is a short lesson on poetry writing. Writing exercises, highlighted by the phrase "In Your Notebook," appear throughout and can be used for ideas and to jog the memory. A well-written book with good examples and solid advice, this manual will be appreciated in public and academic libraries alike. Lisa J. Cihlar, Monroe P.L., WI Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Frances Mayes has always adored houses, and when she saw Bramasole, a neglected, 200-year old Tuscan farmhouse nestled in five overgrown acres, it was love at first sight. Out of that instant infatuation have come four marvelous, and hugely popular, books: the bestsellers Under the Tuscan Sun, Bella Tuscany, In Tuscany, a collaborative photo-textbook with her husband, the poet Edward Mayes, and photographer Bob Krist, and Bringing Tuscany Home: Sensuous Style From the Heart of Italy, another collaborative book with Edward Mayes and photographer Steven Rothfeld. All four highly personal books are about taking chances, living in Italy, loving and renovating an old Italian villa, the pleasures of food, wine, gardens, and the "voluptuousness of Italian life." The third book in her Tuscan trilogy, Every Day in Tuscany: Seasons of an Italian Life (due out in spring 2010), is about Tuscan seasons and Mayes' reflections on her Italian life. She was awarded the Premio Casato Prime Donne for a major contribution in the field of letters in 2009.
Her first novel, Swan, a family saga and mystery, returns Mayes to her childhood home of Georgia and was published in 2002. A film version of Under the Tuscan Sun, starring Diane Lane, was released in fall of 2003. Frances Mayes was the editor for the 2002 Best American Travel Writing. She is also the author of the travel memoir entitled A Year in the World: Journeys of A Passionate Traveller, which immediately debuted as a New York Times bestseller in 2006. Working again with Steven Rothfeld, she published Shrines: Images of Italian Worship, also in 2006.
A widely published poet and essayist, Frances Mayes has written numerous books of poetry, including Sunday in Another Country, After Such Pleasures, The Arts of Fire, Hours, The Book of Summer, and Ex Voto. Her work The Discovery of Poetry: A Field Guide to Reading and Writing Poems is widely used in college poetry classes. Formerly a professor of creative writing at San Francisco State University, where she directed The Poetry Center and chaired the Department of Creative Writing, Mayes now devotes herself full time to writing, restoring an historic garden and to her "At Home in Tuscany" furniture line at Drexel Heritage. She and her husband divide their time between North Carolina and Cortona, Italy.
Biographical note from Steven Barclay Agency
"Tuscany may have found its own bard in Frances Mayes." -- The New York Times
This review is from: The Discovery of Poetry: A Field Guide to Reading and Writing Poems (Paperback)
I've bought and read many "Introduction to Poetry" books over the past several years, but this one is my favorite.
Most of the books of this genre are long on technical information, but lack passion behind the text. Think of a book about music written by a mathematician; The writer might get the technical points across, but the joy of experiencing the music would probably be lacking.
This book presents both the technical information necessary to enjoy poetry, and a selection wonderful poems that demonstrate the principles first hand. In fact, Ms. Mayes is so adept at selecting suitable poems that I think she could prove to be an anthologist of the highest caliber (hopefully she'll read this suggestion and take it to heart).
I recommend this book to anyone who has been baffled by poetry in the past. Enjoy the delights of this book for a time and you'll be hooked on poetry for good.
By the way, do the writing exercises too. You just may find your inner poet.
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26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 starsI bought this book for my daughter, then, October 10, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: The Discovery of Poetry: A Field Guide to Reading and Writing Poems (Paperback)
I bought this book for my daughter, since she came home from school suddenly interested in writing poetry and I found it so fascinating that I bought another copy for myself. I've read Mayes's other books and loved them and sense that same person speaking, clearly and directly, but this time about a subject I've never really warmed to. And she's opened my eyes to another world, helped me tear down and push away all those cliches I had about poetry. Now I'm not so "afraid" when I read a poem that I'm not going to get it. She's very calmly shown me that a poem can just "be." My daughter loves it too and she's sixteen. Highly recommended for those who have always wondered why they never really understood what poetry was all about, but really wanted to.
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This review is from: The Discovery of Poetry: A Field Guide to Reading and Writing Poems (Paperback)
I was excited to discover this book, although its massive size at first made me curious. How much stuff is packed in here? I wondered.
The excellent features of this book include the "In Your Notebook" sections where you can try out the techniques and strategies Mayes has just explained. I also really enjoy the variety of poets whose works are introduced.
However, there are some moments where there is so much detail that I found myself losing interest and not retaining as much. In that respect, it really showed Mayes background with a university-type audience.
It is definitely worth it to have on any aspiring poet's shelf. I can see myself using this as a reference and as an inspiration for years to come.
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