Staff Pick
February 23, 2021, marks the bicentenary of John Keats's death. Dusting off that old copy of Keats you have sitting on your bookshelf would be the perfect way to commemorate this anniversary and to appreciate all over again the beauty and brilliance of his poems. In these pandemic times, his thoughts on mortality and the transience of life seem especially relevant, and together with the sensuous imagery and delightful prose, make for poignant reading. Recommended By Sheila N., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
The Wordsworth Poetry Library comprises the works of the greatest English-speaking poets, as well as many lesser-known poets. Each collection has a specially commissioned introduction.
Synopsis
With an Introduction by Paul Wright.
'What the imagination seizes as Beauty must be truth' So wrote the Romantic poet John Keats (1795-1821) in 1817. This collection contains all of his poetry: the early work, which is often undervalued even today, the poems on which his reputation rests including the 'Odes' and the two versions of the uncompleted epic 'Hyperion', and work which only came to light after his death including his attempts at drama and comic verse.
It all demonstrates the extent to which he tested his own dictum throughout his short creative life. That life spanned one of the most remarkable periods in English history in the aftermath of the French Revolution and this collection, with its detailed introductions and notes, aims to place the poems very much in their context. The collection is ample proof that Keats deservedly achieved his wish to 'be among the English Poets after my death'