Villanelles

by Annie Finch (Editor), Marie-Elizabeth Mali (Editor)

The first of its kind--a comprehensive collection of the best of the villanelle, a delightful poetic form whose popularity ranks only behind that of the sonnet and the haiku.
 
With its intricate rhyme scheme and dance-like pattern of repeating lines, its marriage of recurrence and surprise, the villanelle is a form that has fascinated poets since its introduction almost two centuries ago. Many well-known poets in the past have tried their hands at the villanelle, and the form is enjoying a revival among poets writing today. The poems collected here range from the classic villanelles of the nineteenth century to such famous and memorable examples as Dylan Thomas's "Do not go gentle into that good night," Elizabeth Bishop's "One Art," and Sylvia Plath's "Mad Girl's Love Song." Here too are the cutting-edge works of contemporary poets, including Sherman Alexie, Lorna Dee Cervantes, Rita Dove, Seamus Heaney, Paul Muldoon, and many others whose poems demonstrate the dazzling variety that can be found within the parameters of a single, strict form.

Genres: Poetry, Nonfiction

256 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2012

About the author

Annie Finch is the author of six books of poetry, including Spells: New and Selected Poems, The Poetry Witch Little Book of Spells, Calendars and Eve (both finalists for the National Poetry Series), and the verse play Among the Goddesses: An Epic Libretto in Seven Dreams (Sarasvati Award, 2012). Her poems have appeared onstage at Carnegie Hall and in The Penguin Book of Twentieth-Century American Poetry. Her other works include poetry translation, poetics, poetry anthologies, and a poetry textbook. She is also the editor of Choice Words: Writers on Abortion (Haymarket Books, 2020). Annie Finch holds a Ph.D from Stanford, served for a decade as Director of the Stonecoast MFA Program in Creative Writing, and has lectured on poetry at Berkeley, Toronto, Harvard, and Oxford. In 2010 she was awarded the Robert Fitzgerald Award for her lifetime contribution to the art and craft of Versification. Finch has collaborated on poetic ritual theater productions with artists in theater, dance, and music and has performed as Poetry Witch on three continents. She teaches poetry and magic at PoetryWitchCommunity.org. 

“My poems harness the magically diverse and deeply rooted craft of poetic rhythms and forms. Like spells, they enjoy being spoken aloud three times." —Annie Finch

Annie on Twitter @poetrywitch
Annie on Instagram @thepoetrywitch

Annie connects with readers and facilitates seasonal rituals and classes in poetry and meter in her online community,
PoetryWitchCommunity.org, open to all who identify as women or gender-nonconforming.

Want more info? Updates, videos, poems, spells, spellsletter signup, and more at anniefinch.net

Blessings to all my beautiful readers!

Reviews

[Nicky · Rating 5 out of 5]

An impulse buy with my £10 Waterstone's voucher -- it's a lovely little collection of poetry, with the uniting theme being the form of the poetry, rather than a theme like "love", "war", "great poets of this century" or whatever. It collects some of the classic ones -- Dylan Thomas, Sylvia Plath -- and others that I've never heard of. It's a mixed bag, of course, but it's a good selection.

Villanelles are my favourite form of poetry to write, so I was pretty pleased to find a whole anthology dedicated to them. They're a very special form because they're so tightly bound with rules: it's impressive to see so many different takes on how to play within or bend those rules.

[Patrick Kennedy · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very difficult form, hard to do well, which this anthology illustrates. On the other hand, now I know how to write one…

[Lauren Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a sucker not only for Everyman Modern Editions but also for villanelles, which are poetic jazz for the soul. Double win.

[Sheri · Rating 3 out of 5]

A dainty thing's the Villanelle.
Sly, musical, a verse in rhyme,
It serves its purpose passing well...

(from "Villanelle" by W. E. Henley, 1849-1903)

This is a lovely collection of an insouciant form. But, of course, it's not nonchalant, because the form itself is so structured and purposed.

The book's first section - "The Villanelle Tradition" - includes villanelles by Auden, Roethke, Elizabeth Bishop (One Art) and Dylan Thomas (Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night). The majority of the collection are villanelles by contemporary poets, a great many of which didn't grab me, but others I liked very much (randomly including Mark Strand, Julia Alvarez, Cheryl Clarke, Randall Mann, Marilyn Taylor, Gail White, C.K. Williams, Kate Bernadette Benadict, John Hollander, Robert Schecter, Brendan Constantine, Bruce Pratt, and my dear friend Lisa Vihos, who is the reason I bought the book).

I kept this book in the car, and read a poem here and there over a long time. They were like bon bons, and I enjoyed it.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a serendipitous find for me back in 2012. I enjoyed the book then, and I've enjoyed rereading it this year. Since the theme of the book is a form, not a subject, the poems range from grim to comical. Some closely follow the rules for constructing a villanelle; others stretch the form almost beyond recognition. The book has four sections: traditional villanelles, contemporary ones, villanelles about villanelles (metavillanelles?), and variations on villanelles. While I didn't like all the poems, I admired many of them, and I got some new favorites from this book.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

I usually a not a huge fan of poetry anthologies, but the villanelle is such a strong form that it really evened out the reading experience. While I definitely had favourites and a few I didn't like at all, overall I really enjoyed reading this anthology.

[Gregg Hower · Rating 3 out of 5]

The range of authors in this anthology is impressive, and there are many good poems. A book that for me was best read in small doses over a long period due to the repetitive nature of the form.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before reading this I did not even know that a villanelle was a type of poetry, now I am definitely a fan.

[Steve Bowbrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Georgeous, entertaining, basically unimprovable. So many surprising and beautiful and provocative villanelles that you've never heard of alongside a handful of mighty favourites (and a bunch of amazing poems that you probably didn't even know were villanelles). And so many that tease or stretch or totally demolish the form that your head will spin around and probably explode. Beautifully edited and organised (with a chapter of villanelles about villanelles obvs) by Annie Finch and Marie-Elizabeth Mali. And the lovely Everyman edition is a pocket-sized wonder. I love this book.

[Renée · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went to a reading for this book at AWP 2012, and the reading was fantastic. Known writers like Marilyn Nelson read beside writers like Danna Ephland, and the result was the best that Villanelles have to offer. I highly recommend this fantastic collection!

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

pretty good collection of the poems includes one of my favorites like Dylan Thomas

[Madison · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful evocative read!!


Thank you Annie Finch!!!