Sunday, March 15, 2009

W. B. Yeats: The Poems

The spouse went to Ireland, and because I had to stay home, he brought me back a truly splendid gift: W. B. Yeats: The Poems, a hardcover collection from the British version of Everyman's Library. I really love Everyman's Library; it's an imprint of Random House that publishes the classics in these relatively compact but kinda sumptuous hardcover editions. (Interestingly, W. B. Yeats: The Poems is not part of the American version of Everyman's. Which seems a terrible oversight, but I guess Yeats still does not have the stature in the U.S. that he does in Europe. That's a shame.)
So the book includes most but not all of Yeats' poetry. Yeats was very prolific, so even this abridged version is 395 pages of poetry. His major works are represented in full, so it appears to have the complete content of books such as The Wind Among the Reeds, Responsibilities, The Wild Swans at Coole, Michael Robartes and the Dancer, The Tower, and Last Poems, just to name a few. Then it has extensive notes. Also, a chronology of Yeats' life and a critical introduction. AND an index of titles and an index of first lines. Awesome, awesome, awesome!
I am very pleased with this book. It's my new favorite book.

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