Customer Reviews

Selected Poems

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This review is from a strictly prose guy, as poetry usually goes right over my head. In my efforts to understand poetry, I have discovered that the work of e.e. cummings breaks through the stylistic barriers that make many people shy away from poetry altogether. cummings' use of bizarre spacing, punctuation, and phrasings keeps the reader away from the "sing-song" routine that tends to damage the credibility of many a poem, and cummings uses the art of style to say many things and make many points in just a few words. The most fascinating aspect of cummings' work is letting the small number of words in a poem really sink in until you gain many insights. This book usefully arranges cummings' most noteworthy poems into categories so you can more easily dwell on his major areas of subject matter. cummings did not live the hard life of many noteworthy poets, so a good number of his poems are musings on abstract concepts like life, love, mythology, and mortality. However, his much sharper observations on war, prostitution, politics, and the dark side of urban life can be truly shocking once you delve into their deeper meanings. Contemplating the title of this review, which is also the first line of the poem on page 181 of this book, will help any poetry-fearing reader to dive into cummings' world.

About this selection: yes! We find much to praise in it. But we also complain of omissions. Where is the splendid ballad "darling! because my blood can sing" with its refrain "but if a look should april me"? Where is the exquisite poem "except in your/honour", written in 6-line stanzas of alternating four- and two-syllabics? Where is "my love/ thy hair is one kingdom," a splendour modelled on the Song of Songs? Where is the sonnet beginning "when the proficient poison of sure sleep/ bereaves us of our slow tranquillities"? And why did the editor include the "Ballad of an Intellectual," a sour jingle about sour communards?

We praise this selection for its topical arrangements, for the artwork by Cummings (especially the sketch based on a Daumier painting, and the cover illustration "Street Canyon"); we praise the editor for his apt, brief, informative introductions to each section; we praise the editor, especially, for his invaluable biography of Cummings entitled! DREAMS IN THE MIRROR, a book without which any reader's understanding of Estlin Cummings and his poetry, is bound to be imperfect and deficient.

We notice that 47 of the 156 poems in this admirable selection are sonnets. Have other reviewers noticed? We notice, further, that at least fifty more poems are written in a formal mode, enlivened by EEC's delicate flair with antithesis. Cummings is not an aleatoric writer; his apparent anarchy is skillfully calculated, and precious little is left to chance. Some of Estlin Cummings' experiments have allowed readers to forget that he was a poet of sophistication, of skill, of learning and (yes) of ineluctably exquisite beauty.

After being introduced slightly to e. e. cummings in High School, I was intrigued by his experimental and original style. I bought this book soon after. With a wonderful selection of his amazing poetry, small biographies, and a few of his paintings and drawings, one can tap into the genius that is e. e. cummings. This is the perfect beginners' book to the wonderous world of e. e. cummings.

I've always liked cumming's poetry, so perhaps I'm more than a little biased, but this is a particularly lovely collection. The illustrations by the poet add a new dimension to the already luminous poetry, and the commentary gives one something of an impression of cummings' state of being at the time of the poem's conception. I'd have to reccomend this to anyone who liked even one of cummings' poems.

kennedy delivers an effective compilation and frames it with an introduction that explains how amazing this poet really is. in a world dominated by hypocracy veiled in meaningless procedures and technicalities, and supported by misguided veneration of randomly applied rule of law, cummings' poems serve to expose lies and the transcendence of values in western society. there is a great deal to learn from e e cummings. This book is a good start.

This selection of around 150 of Cummings more than two- thousand poems contains those I remember from the anthologies, and my guess is most of the other truly memorable ones. Richard Kennedy writes a brief description of the life and work, and prefaces to each of the twelve sections. It is possible from these prefaces to have an overall sense of Cummings life and work. The son of a Unitarian minister brought up in Cambridge Massachussets he would turn out to be one of the great innovators of American poetry. His interest and work in painting greatly influenced the writing, especially its original layout on the page.Cummings famous for the elimination of capital letters, for the odd and original spacing of the poems, for the strong romantic character of the writing, for the strong individualism in life and work was at one time with Robert Frost one of the two most popular poets in America. Many of his lines are powerful and memorable. I think randomly of 'There's a hell of a world next door. Let's go' or 'How do you like your blue- eyed boy now Mr. Death?' or ' No one not even the rain has such small hands' or 'I dream of Olaf glad and big' or 'Pity this poor monster manunkind" Cummings is also known for satirical political poems that I do not know well. A selection of them is also contained in this book. I suppose the poems of his that I find most congenial are romantic ones. Cummings also had a strong affinity for and connection with Nature.
This anthology provides the reader with the best of his work, and is thus a real treasure.

The cover of this book alone is enough to want to purchase it, and the selection of poems inside is excellent. There are a number of cummings' most recognized poems (e.g. since feeling is first), as well as some of his most erotic (e.g. i like my body when it is with your; she being Brand). Overall, I am very pleased with this purchase, and would strongly recommend this copy to any love of poetry!

This edition of E.E. Cummings' poetry is easy to access: Kennedy organized the poetry based on subject: Childhood, War, Politics, etc. In addition, the book includes some of Cummings' sketches and paintings. Though I love the book, some of my favorite poems were not included. My goal is to get the book of all his poems from 1917-1962.

Everyone should read ee cummings, even non-poetry lovers will love cummings whimsy and clever wordplay. He has also written the most beautiful, most romantic poetry of anyone in the English language.

This book is so unlike any other poetry I have read. It has a bit of biography and several of E.E. Cummings' drawings. I find it truly divine. E.E. was so talented and he truly lets himself shine through his different types of artistry. These selected poems I was mostly unfamiliar with.