The Art of Poetry

Anyone who has been asked to read and understand a poem has probably wondered: What does this really mean? Have I understood this the way I was supposed to? Did I get it? As the least literal of all of forms of creative writing, poetry is for many readers also the most cryptic. Confronted by the mysteries of poetic interpretation, some people are intrigued, some become addicted, others are left frustrated. Shira Wolosky's accessibly written book, The Art of Poetry, provides a road map of the poetic form that will help its readers understand and enjoy poetry. The Art of Poetry offers a step-by-step introduction to skills for reading poetry, working progressively from smaller units such as the individual word, the line, and the image to larger ones, such as verse forms, voice and gender, and metrical patterns. These basic skills of poetic analysis are presented in conjunction with a selection of poems that acquaints the reader with the great lyric poets in the English and American tradition. As a whole, The Art of Poetry presents a vision of poetry as dynamic, historical, and culturally engaged.