Synopses & Reviews
This long-awaited, indispensable volume contains more than 1600 poems drawn from dozens of languages and cultures, and spans a period of more than 4000 years from ancient Sumer and Egypt to the late twentieth century. encompasses the many worlds of poetry, poetry of all styles, of all eras, of all tongues: from the ancient epic of Gilgamesh and the Pharaoh Akhnaten's "Hymn to the Sun" to the haiku of Basho and the dazzling imagery of Li Po; from Vedic hymns to Icelandic sagas to the "Carmina Burana"; from the magnificence of Homer and Dante to the lyricism of Goethe and Verlaine; from the piercing insights of Rilke and Yeats to the revelatory verse of Emily Dickinson, Garcia Lorca, Derek Walcott, Seamus Heaney, and many more. While includes a generous selection of the best English-language verse from Chaucer to the present, it is designed to lay before the reader the best that all the world's cultures have to offer--more than eighty percent of the book is poetry originally written in languages other than English and translated by some of the finest talents working today, many of them brilliant poets in their own right. This is no mere sampler: In choosing only works of the highest intrinsic quality the editors have created a book that will surprise knowledgeable readers and lead newcomers to an understanding of the glories of world poetry that is our common heritage.
Review
World Poetry is a book that belongs on every reader's bookshelf. (Chicago Tribune)
Review
Breathtaking . . . multiculturalism without the earnestness-a joyful poetic survey of our cultural heritage. (San Diego Union-Tribune)
Synopsis
The one necessary book of poetry for every home and library.
Synopsis
WhileWorld Poetry includes a generous selection of the best English-language verse from Chaucer to the present, it is designed to lay before the reader the best that all the world's cultures have to offer more than eighty percent of the book is poetry originally written in languages other than English and translated by some of the finest talents working today, many of them brilliant poets in their own right. This is no mere sampler: In choosing only works of the highest intrinsic quality the editors have created a book that will surprise knowledgeable readers and lead newcomers to an understanding of the glories of world poetry that is our common heritage. "
Synopsis
This indispensable volume contains more than 1,600 poems drawn from dozens of languages and cultures and spans a period of more than 4,000 years. World Poetry encompasses the many realms of poetry: from the ancient epic of Gilgamesh to the haiku of Basho and the dazzling imagery of Li Po; from Vedic hymns to Icelandic sagas to the "Carmina Burana"; from the magnificence of Dante to the lyricism of Goethe and Verlaine; from the piercing insights of Rilke and Yeats to the revelatory verse of Emily Dickinson, Garcia Lorca, Derek Walcott, Seamus Heaney, and many more.
About the Author
Clifton Fadiman is an editor, television personality, and the longest serving judge at Book-of-the-Month Club, member of the advisory board to the Encyclopedia Britannica, and author of many books.John S. Major is an editor at Book-of-the-Month Club and author of ten books about East Asia.Katharine Washburn is an editor and translator. She lives in New York.