John Keats: The Making of a Poet [Paperback]

Aileen Ward (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 488 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux; Rev Sub edition (December 1, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374520291
• ISBN-13: 978-0374520298
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,008,103 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars John Keats: The Making of a Poet, January 29, 1999

By 

[e-mail] "Lauren Hauptman" (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: John Keats: The Making of a Poet (Paperback)

This is an excellent, fluidly written book which explores the life and writing of John Keats. Aileen Ward writes from a psychological perspective and seems to enter deeply into the inner workings of the poet. She describes his development with sensitivity and elegance. Her writing is seamless, and although she explores Keats's life thoroughly, the text never seems weighed down by detail. Ward's account may seem in certain sections to idealize Keats as 'the poet' and set him above the 'common man.' She can also seem subtly manipulative in her treatment of his life and the psychological journey that she believes him to have undertaken. At times, the reader wonders how she could write so authoritatively on Keats's inner life. However, despite these issues, Ward's biography is extremely valuable for anyone who wishes to better know Keats and his life. It is a perfect book for the beginning Keats scholar-- a deeply-felt biography which seems true to its subject in style as well as form.

5.0 out of 5 stars A compelling and moving account, August 14, 2010

By 

Gabriel Sessions (Middletown, CT, US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: John Keats: The Making of a Poet (Paperback)

Ward shapes the life of Keats into a narrative as lively and tangible as the best novel. Her obvious sympathy for the poet, in the trials of poetic invention and during the long decline in health that preceded his premature death, is never overpowering, nor does it cloud a balanced presentation of the details of his life. By far the best literary biography I've read.