Buy Used
Used - Good See details
$2.10 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
New and Selected Poems (Wesleyan Poetry Series)
  
Tell the Publisher!
I'd like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

New and Selected Poems (Wesleyan Poetry Series) [Paperback]

Gregory Orr (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)


Available from these sellers.


Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Hardcover --  
Paperback --  

Product Details

  • Paperback: 103 pages
  • Publisher: Wesleyan (October 1, 1987)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0819511412
  • ISBN-13: 978-0819511416
  • Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 4.8 x 0.3 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,932,530 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

 

Customer Reviews

2 Reviews
5 star:
 (2)
4 star:    (0)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (2 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing, February 14, 2009
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: New and Selected Poems (Wesleyan Poetry Series) (Paperback)
Gregory Orr's "New and Selected Poems" affords the reader a look into the early work of this most unusual poet. Possibly the only modern poet still writing exclusively in lyric form, Orr has a made a good case for the lyric as the chief vehicle of imagination and emotion.

While some of the poems ("Beginning" would be a good example) reflect a young man simply intoxicated with the art itself, his "Gathering the Bones" and autobiographical work show the promise of what was later to emerge in "The Caged Owl".

Gregory Orr has been dealt a cruel hand in life. During a hunting trip when he was 12 years old, he accidentally shot and killed his younger brother, Peter Orr. His father became a metamphetamine addict and died of his disease at a young age.

For all this, though, Orr managed to transcend his wounds and in a big way. Embracing the written word in place (it would seem) of any transcendence, his work takes place in a hidden world of the imagination in which he heroically grapples with his demons and uses poetry as a sort of psychical lifeboat.

The poet always returns to the poem, no matter what is going on in his life. In "Leaving the Asylum", seemingly composed after Orr's discharge from a mental hospital, all he can think of is returning home to write a poem.

"The metal harps of the high gates/make a clangorous music/closing behind me/They announce the "new life" of freedom/and only a battered valise/to lug down this alley of poplars/I repeat the litany of the poems/that released me/Hollow tree though I am/these things I cherish/
the hum of my blood/busily safe in its hive of being/the delicate oily kiss my fingertips give each thing they touch/and desire/a huge fish I drag with me/ through the wilderness.."

His appreciation of our mortal existence over and above any pain is impressive for a person who has suffered so much. Also here are some disturbing and intriguing poems about his experiences as a Civil Rights' protestor in the early 60's. One of the most imaginative and determined poets out there.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing, February 14, 2009
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
Gregory Orr's "New and Selected Poems" affords the reader a look into the early work of this most unusual poet. Possibly the only modern poet still writing exclusively in lyric form, Orr has a made a good case for the lyric as the chief vehicle of imagination and emotion.

While some of the poems ("Beginning" would be a good example) reflect a young man simply intoxicated with the art itself, his "Gathering the Bones" and autobiographical work show the promise of what was later to emerge in "The Caged Owl".

Gregory Orr has been dealt a cruel hand in life. During a hunting trip when he was 12 years old, he accidentally shot and killed his younger brother, Peter Orr. His father became a metamphetamine addict and died of his disease at a young age.

For all this, though, Orr managed to transcend his wounds and in a big way. Embracing the written word in place (it would seem) of any transcendence, his work takes place in a hidden world of the imagination in which he heroically grapples with his demons and uses poems a sort of psychical lifeboat.

The poet always returns to the poem, no matter what is going on in his life. In "Leaving the Asylum", seemingly composed after Orr's discharge from a mental hospital, all he can think of is returning home to write a poem.

"The metal harps of the high gates/make a clangorous music/closing behind me/They announce the "new life" of freedom/and only a battered valise/to lug down this alley of poplars/I repeat the litany of the poems/that released me/Hollow tree though I am/these things I cherish/
the hum of my blood/busily safe in its hive of being/the delicate oily kiss my fingertips give each thing they touch/and desire/a huge fish I drag with me/ through the wilderness.."

His appreciation of our mortal existence over and above any pain is impressive for a person who has suffered so much. Also here are some disturbing and intriguing poems about his experiences as a Civil Rights' protestor in the early 60's. One of the most imaginative and determined poets out there.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Only search this product's reviews



Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums


Listmania!


Create a Listmania! list

So You'd Like to...


Create a guide


Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject