Collected Poems

by Derek Mahon

AUTOGRAPHED COPY ... clean book, tight spine, appears unopened

Genres: Poetry

Paperback

First published January 28, 1999

About the author

Derek Mahon was born in Belfast in 1941, studied at Trinity College, Dublin, and the Sorbonne, and has held journalistic and academic appointments in London and New York. A member of Aosdána, he has received numerous awards including the Irish Academy of Letters Award, the Scott Moncrieff Translation Prize, and Lannan and Guggenheim Fellowships. - See more at: http://www.gallerypress.com/authors/m...

Reviews

[Andrew H]

Obviously Collected Poems contains more poems than the New Selected Poems but the shorter volume contains the key poems that illustrate Mahon's progress as a poet and remains a fine introduction. It is a pity that Collected Poems does not indicate the volumes from which poems are selected and lacks any critical perspective. As Mahon was notorious for re-naming poems this out to have been addressed.

[ANNA fayard]

“Everything is Going to be All Right”

How should I not be glad to contemplate

the clouds clearing beyond the dormer window

and a high tide reflected on the ceiling?

There will be dying, there will be dying,

but there is no need to go into that.

The poems flow from the hand unbidden

and the hidden source is the watchful heart.

The sun rises in spite of everything

and the far cities are beautiful and bright.

I lie here in a riot of sunlight

watching the day break and the clouds flying.

Everything is going to be all right.

[B A STRONG]

A collection of Derek Mahon's wide landscape of poetry. This is very interesting as it contains his poems from decades ago.

[Tôpher Mills]

Splendid collection that gives a thorough view of his poetry.

[Christin]

I have read a lot of Irish literature, granted mostly the classics and the yet-to-be-completely Canonical women (wait for my book), but the favorite surprise of my literary life is a toss-up between Mahon's sheer genius, "A Disused Shed in Co. Wexford," and Michael Longley's "Pipistrelle". In the grand tradition of continuing my Irish male poets as potentates metaphor, Mahon is a Harp, light, quick and satisfying. His poems are lyrical and richly allusive without being heavy-handed, and he always has the most interesting epigrams and dedications. The whole collection is replete with keepers.

[T P Kennedy]

An excellent collection - there's everything here from dry wit to sentimental observations. All of the poetry is underscored by a quiet intelligence. There's a sharpness and strength to his poetry that contrasts with the sometimes overly simple lyricism of Heaney. I've rarely enjoyed a collection as much.