Product Description

The first selected poems of a major poet who "wrote with more heart than any other North American poet of the twentieth century" (Rodney Jones, Parnassus)

More than any other poet of his generation, James Wright spoke to the great sadness and hope that are inextricable from the iconography of America: its rail yards, rivers, cities, and once vast natural beauty. Speaking in the unique lyrical voice that he called his "Ohioan," Wright created poems of immense sympathy for sociey's alienated and outcast figures and also of ardent wonder at the restorative power of nature.

Selected Poems fills a significant gap in Wright's bibliography: that of an accessible, carefully chosen collection to satisfy both longtime readers and those just discovering his work. Edited and with an introduction by Wright's widow, Anne, and his close friend the poet Robert Bly, who also wrote an introduction, Selected Poems is a personal, deeply considered collection of work with pieces chosen from all of Wright's books. It is an overdue--and timely--new view of a poet whose life and work encompassed the extremes of American life.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #610467 in Books
• Published on: 2005-05-11
• Released on: 2005-04-28
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 176 pages

About the Author
James Wright (1927-80) won the Pulitzer Prize in 1972. His books include Saint Judas, Shall We Gather at the River, and The Branch Will Not Break. FSG published Above the River: The Complete Poems in 1992.

Customer Reviews

An excellent introduction to a major poet
Among 20th century poets Wright stands as singular in his evocation of pathos without heavy-handed sentiment, his use of clear language without being predictable, and his imagery which loves the "things" of the world without being objective or cold. There are few poets of the last fifty years, if ever, who can make the grand claims that he does without sounding excessive, and in that he seems to be a great poet of timing. How else can one be moved by such lines as "Suddenly I realize/That if I stepped out of my body I would break/Into blossom" without the cumulative effects of image and rhythm? Bly does an excellent job of introducing the reader to the major features and periods of Wright's poetry, breaking things into times of darkness and light (and pointing out how it is that Wright, in his peculiar fashion, could find light and hope in moments of despair), as well as giving clear definition to Wright's major influences and pertinent details of his biography. Anne Wright's foreward is also a great asset, as it briefly shows some of the process into making a selected volume, given both her lack of experience as an editor and her emotional connection to the poems. As she suggests, it is hard to find consensus as to which poems should be included from Above the River, the complete volume, yet the major poems are all represented, as well as some prose pieces and the formative early poems that show the influence of John Crowe Ransom over Wright, then his student. In all, this should stand as an excellent introductory volume of a poet who stands as one of the few originals who cannot be immitated but also cannot be ignored.