Bright Wings: An Illustrated Anthology of Poems about Birds

Poet laureate Billy Collins joins David Sibley, America's foremost bird illustrator, to celebrate the singular muse that has inspired so much poetry since the invention of the form. From Catullus and Chaucer to Robert Browning and James Wright, birds have served as a powerful metaphor for beauty, escape, transcendence, and song, expressing and embodying a poet's deepest longings and ineffable desires. Birds are, in effect, longtime collaborators of the poet's art.

In this irresistible anthology, more than one hundred poems by poets throughout history are combined with sixty original illustrations in ornithological detail. Part poetry collection, part field guide, this work will appeal to readers who enjoy poetry and appreciate a visual interpretation of verse, and it will attract nature lovers who value a richer understanding of their objects of study. Carefully selected and species-specific, these poems and pictures enhance our experience with the bright wings that surround us.

Poets include: Elizabeth Bishop - Robert Browning - Catullus - Amy Clampitt - William Cowper - Linda Gregg - Eamon Grennan - Brenda Hillman - Thomas Hardy - Seamus Heaney - John Hollander - Kathleen Jamie - John Keats - Howard Nemerov - Mary Oliver - Sylvia Plath - Delmore Schwartz - Charles Simic - Wallace Stevens - Anne Stevenson - Henry David Thoreau - John Updike - Robert Penn Warren - Richard Wilbur - William Carlos Williams

In this beautiful collection of poems and paintings, Billy Collins, former U.S. poet laureate, joins with David Allen Sibley, America's foremost bird illustrator, to celebrate the winged creatures that have inspired so many poets to sing for centuries. From Catullus and Chaucer to Robert Browning and James Wright, poets have long treated birds as powerful metaphors for beauty, escape, transcendence, and divine expression.

Here, in this substantial anthology, more than one hundred contemporary and classic poems are paired with close to sixty original, ornithologically precise illustrations. Part poetry collection, part field guide, part art book, Bright Wings presents verbal and visual interpretations of the natural world and reminds us of our intimate connection to the bright wings around us. Each in their own way, these poems and pictures honor the enchanting creatures that have been, and continue to be, longtime collaborators with the poet's and painter's art.

Poet and bird pairings include: Wallace Stevens and the Blackbird; Emily Dickinson and the Robin; Marianne Moore and the Frigate Pelican; Thomas Hardy and the Goldfinch; Sylvia Plath and the Pheasant; John Updike and the Seagull; Walt Whitman and the Eagle; Billy Collins and the Sparrow.

Poet laureate Billy Collins joins David Sibley, world-renowned author and illustrator of The Sibley Guide to Birds, to celebrate the singular muse that has inspired so much poetry since the invention of the form. From Catullus and Chaucer to Robert Browning and Robert Frost, birds have served as a powerful metaphor for beauty, escape, transcendence, and song, expressing and embodying a poet's deepest longings and ineffable desires. Birds are, in effect, longtime collaborators of the poet's art.

In this irresistible anthology, more than one hundred poems by poets throughout history are combined with sixty original illustrations in ornithological detail. Part poetry collection, part field guide, this work will appeal to readers who enjoy poetry and appreciate a visual interpretation of verse, and it will attract nature lovers who value a richer understanding of their objects of study. Carefully selected and species-specific, these poems and pictures enhance our experience with the bright wings that surround us.