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Strike Sparks: Selected Poems, 1980-2002 (Paperback)

by Sharon Olds (Author)
4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)

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Strike Sparks: Selected Poems, 1980-2002 + One Secret Thing + The Unswept Room
Price For All Three: $36.45

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description
A powerful collection from one of our most gifted and widely read poets-117 of her finest poems drawn from her seven published volumes.

Michael Ondaatje has called Sharon Olds's poetry "pure fire in the hands" and cheered the "roughness and humor and brag and tenderness and completion in her work as she carries the reader through rooms of passion and loss." This rich selection exhibits those qualities in poem after poem, reflecting, moreover, an exciting experimentation with rhythm and language and a movement toward an embrace beyond the personal. Subjects are revisited-the pain of childhood, adolescent sexual stirrings, the fulfillment of marriage, the wonder of children-but each recasting penetrates ever more deeply, enriched by new perceptions and conceits.

Strike Sparks is a testament to this remarkable poet's continuing and amazing growth.


From the Hardcover edition.

From the Inside Flap
A powerful collection from one of our most gifted and widely read poets–117 of her finest poems drawn from her seven published volumes.

Michael Ondaatje has called Sharon Olds's poetry "pure fire in the hands" and cheered the "roughness and humor and brag and tenderness and completion in her work as she carries the reader through rooms of passion and loss." This rich selection exhibits those qualities in poem after poem, reflecting, moreover, an exciting experimentation with rhythm and language and a movement toward an embrace beyond the personal. Subjects are revisited–the pain of childhood, adolescent sexual stirrings, the fulfillment of marriage, the wonder of children–but each recasting penetrates ever more deeply, enriched by new perceptions and conceits.

Strike Sparks is a testament to this remarkable poet's continuing and amazing growth.


From the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

  • Paperback: 208 pages
  • Publisher: Knopf (September 28, 2004)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0375710760
  • ISBN-13: 978-0375710766
  • Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #195,929 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category: (What's this?)

    #2 in  Books > Literature & Fiction > Authors, A-Z > ( O ) > Olds, Sharon

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Strike Sparks: Selected Poems, 1980-2002
82% buy the item featured on this page:
Strike Sparks: Selected Poems, 1980-2002 4.9 out of 5 stars (8)
$12.21
One Secret Thing
5% buy
One Secret Thing 3.7 out of 5 stars (3)
$11.53
The Dead and the Living
5% buy
The Dead and the Living 3.4 out of 5 stars (11)
$11.25
Gold Cell (Knopf Poetry Series)
4% buy
Gold Cell (Knopf Poetry Series) 5.0 out of 5 stars (6)
$10.88

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Customer Reviews

8 Reviews
5 star:
 (7)
4 star:
 (1)
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Average Customer Review
4.9 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars If her poems are as moving as her letter to Laura..., September 21, 2005
By S. MCADOO (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I have to admit I was not familiar with the work of Sharon Olds before today. Today I read her moving letter to Laura Bush explaining why she was declining her invitation to the National Book Festival in Washington.

If her poetry is one tenth as moving, heart-felt, and true as that letter, she's gotta be one terrific poet, and I look forward to the volumes of her work I ordered from Amazon this evening. If you've not yet read her letter yet, I urge you, do so.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Great, orignial, moving collection of poems, March 17, 2005
Sharon Olds has many capabilities as a poet. This collection is highly entertaining, catches you off guard, is vivid, moving, and beautifully raunchy. She celebrates sex and family as well, or better, than anyone I've read. Nice book with some very memorable poems.
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Still the best living female poet, August 20, 2005
By S. A Blackerby (Wichita, KS USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Sharon Olds is a standard issue female confessionalist poet. If you like Plath or Sexton then give her a try. She is more graphic then they are though. I hate to see her described by one reviewer as the worst poet in the world. Simply not true. If you enjoy honest, bare and shocking writing then she will be the best poet you have ever read.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Marvelous Collection
Sharon Olds is an excellent poet, and this collection makes a grand introduction for anyone who is not already familiar with her work.
Published 6 months ago by Aphra Wannabe

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful Writing
Sharon Olds is an incredible poet, and should be read by anyone interested in current poetry. The poems in Strike Sparks are powerful language evoking clear visuals and strong... Read more
Published 16 months ago by GardenPoet

5.0 out of 5 stars The most accessible -- and thrilling -- poet now writing
Her father is dying, and her plane's been cancelled, but there's another, leaving in just a few minutes, not in this terminal, but it will get her to her father before he dies,... Read more
Published 17 months ago by Jesse Kornbluth

5.0 out of 5 stars Support from a chronic fan
As one of Olds' fans for many years, I am the owner of most of her books. Her book The Father still brings me to tears. Read more
Published on June 17, 2007 by Hermeskid

5.0 out of 5 stars Support of Sharol Olds
After reading her letter to Mrs. Bush, I'm supporting Sharon Old's rejection of Laura Bush's invitation to participate in the National Book Festival and breakfast at the White... Read more
Published on September 30, 2005 by B. Aboud

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