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Inspired and inspirational, worldly wise,
deeply felt, and often delightfully funny—here in one
compact volume are 100 of the greatest poems written in English
over the last century, memorable masterpieces that everyone
should know and enjoy. Selected and introduced by Joseph Parisi,
former longtime editor of Poetry magazine, this brilliant
collection brings together the greatest poems by all the classic
authors, along with the choicest works by today’s most
accomplished artists in America and abroad. From W. H. Auden
and T. S. Eliot to John Ashbery and A. R. Ammons; Elizabeth
Bishop and Marianne Moore to Sylvia Plath and Mary Oliver;
Robert Frost and W. B. Yeats to Allen Ginsberg and Thom Gunn,
this comprehensive anthology features the poems that have
best expressed the spirit of our times and helped create modern
culture. In addition to such ground-breaking works as “The
Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” and “Howl,”
Mr. Parisi has included the incisive social satire and whimsical
wordplay of such wits as Dorothy Parker, Ogden Nash, and Frank
O’Hara. Among contemporary poets in the book are Seamus
Heaney, Jane Kenyon, Rita Dove, Sharon Olds, Paul Muldoon,
Adrienne Rich, and the redoubtable Billy Collins, all of whom
have already achieved wide popular acclaim for poems that
speak compellingly about modern life and the perennial concerns
of the human heart. Mr. Parisi provides a general introduction
to the book and introduces each poem with a brief biographical
and critical note. For anyone who wishes to discover or to
re-experience the most important and vital poems of our time,
100 Essential Modern Poems is, quite simply, indispensable.
Joseph Parisi edited Poetry
magazine from 1983 to 2003. He has been a Guggenheim Fellow
and is a By-Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge. His most
recent books include Dear Editor: A History of Poetry
in Letters and The Poetry Anthology,
both co-edited with Stephen Young. Mr. Parisi lives in Chicago.
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