Customer Reviews

Poetry for a Lifetime: All-Time Favorite Poems to Delight and Inspire All Ages

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Just holding and leafing through this book is a pleasure for any bibliophile, and for any lover of poetry. From the dustjacket, which uses Maxfield Parrish's Riverbank in Autumn, to the rich, heavy paper, the endpapers, the line drawings, the elegant typography, the book's design promises an exquisite journey through the world of poetry. That promise is fulfilled, as is the promise that this book contains "poetry for a lifetime."

Organized topically, each poem is introduced by a few lines of commentary from the editor. These commentaries are what make the book stand out, as they give readers the feeling that we're sitting with a favorite uncle, reading poetry together by the fireside. The editor, a retired Navy doctor, writes in his dedication, "When I discovered that my grandkids had not even heard of Casey at the Bat or The Wreck of the Hesperus, I felt that I would surely like to do something about it." Do something about it he did, reviewing thousands of poems and selecting ones that he felt best express: "Music is the Poetry of Expression. Poetry is the Music of Literature.

This book is a valuable addition to any library, a browser's delight, a parent's essential out-loud reading (and not just the nursery rhymes), a student's companion, an outstanding gift to a favorite teacher, friend, spouse or loved one.

Recently purchased your Poetry for a Lifetime, and I just wanted to tell you that it is one of the most precious books that I have ever chosen. What a delightful selection of some of the most beautiful, unique, and delightful poetry collected in one edition. I, too, have always enjoyed picking up a book of poetry to read and this is one that I shall certainly enjoy and cherish over and over.....I intend to share it with anyone who will listen to me. God bless you for the love, time and effort that you put into this lovely book.

Poetry for a Lifetime just won the National Publishers Freedom Award for best self-published poetry book of 1999. "The Editor has loved poetry since childhood but found that today's kids, including his own grandchildren, have not even heard of 'oldies' like Paul Revere's Ride or Casey at the Bat. Thus he has created a beautiful book of favorites from nursery rhymes to adult advice, not from Byron, Keats, and Shelly, but from the stories that we all enjoy hearing and should be passed on to future generations."

I was given Poetry for a Lifetime as a gift. I picked it up a week ago and was immediately taken by the selection of poems available in this volume. The first chapter on nursery rhymes brought back my childhood to me. I also learned that several of the rhymes were written by famous poets--a wonderful revelation. I discovered poems that I had read and learned in high school, and reading my father's favorite poem, In Flanders Fields, brought tears to my eyes. This is a volume that I will pass on to my children and to my grandchildren. I highly recommend it.

I was delighted with this book, i took quality time off with my children to read these poems to them in bed. My eight year old son and 12 year old son loved some of them and i loved them all . They have their own favourites. What an ideal book to get a child started in the wondrous world of poetry. I am buying them a book each for christmas.

I have found many of my favorites in this book. Besides being organized by categories, there is a full index in the back that lists poems by title, by first line, and alphabetically by author name. And the print is big enough to read. A nice book.

I want to tell you how very much I love your "Poetry for a Lifetime". I grew up memorizing (or trying to) so many of these poems. Even now I remember a lot of first stanzas and last lines so I was happy to renew the in-between lines. Believe me, I haven't put your book on the bookshelf-I enjoy it too much.

My father called me (usually it's the other way around) to rave about my gift of Poetry for a Lifetime. He really, really likes the book. He said it took him back, that it had all the good poems he remembered from his past. My sister-in-law said he even mentioned it to them at dinner. It isn't often I am able to give him anything he doesn't already have and I was happy to have struck a chord with him.

One of my most cherished birthday gifts was your "Poetry for a Lifetime." Many of the poems chosen for your book were those we were required to memorize in the early grades--and we later attempted to teach to our students. Your annotations were a truly delightful addition. We will be looking forward to seeing your next compilation.

This book brings together a collection of poems that touches the heart, the mind, and tickles the senses in a way that guarantees it's success. Etheredge demonstrates a great deal of sensitivity by having chosen poems that appeal to readers wherever they are in life. It wasn't long before I found myself reading my selections aloud or getting lost in stories like, Coleridge's, "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner". Poe's "Annabel Lee brought back memories of a youthful suitor, while "One, Two, Three" inspired imagination. Reading Holmes', "Old Ironsides", Whittier's, "Barbara Frietchie" and Patrick Henry's, "The War Inevitable" reassured me that my sense of patriotism was still alive and well. "Poetry for a Lifetime" is full of poems I will love reading to my grandchildren, share with friends, spark discussion with our book club or simply bring myself moments of personal enrichment.