100 Prized Poems: Twenty-Five Years of the Forward Books

by William Sieghart (Editor)

This anthology of 100 poems by 100 poets brings together the best poetry of the last twenty-five years, as determined by the judges of the prestigious Forward Prizes for Poetry. The roll call includes both familiar names and fresh new voices, with contributions from Simon Armitage, Carol Ann Duffy, Seamus Heaney, Ted Hughes, Jackie Kay, Alice Oswald, Don Paterson, Kate Tempest and Derek Walcott.

Genres: Poetry

207 pages, Paperback

Published September 15, 2016

Reviews

[Libby · Rating 4 out of 5]

My aunt doesn't like poetry, but she always says she wishes she could enjoy. I suggested this book, and after she'd read (and enjoyed!) it, she loaned her copy to me. And, not to brag, but this was a great suggestion. It has a really wide range of poets - lots of well-known names that I recognise from my school English anthologies, some really influential poets and then the younger poets they seem to have influenced. It's not 4* for liking all the poems in it (frankly some of them were terrible) but 4* for being a solid survey of 25 years of poetry, for having a bit of many things, and for having a few of my favourite poets in which biased me to like it more anyway.

[Dane Cobain · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another of the poetry books that I won in a National Poetry Day competition, and like the other ones this didn’t disappoint. Edited by William Sieghart, this pulls together twenty five years of the best poems from the Forward books of poetry – books that collect the best poems of each year and award the best with the prestigious Forward Prizes.

Because of that, the poets here are at the top of their game. We’re talking everyone from Carol Ann Duffy to Ted Hughes and Kate Tempest, which means that there’s a lot of variety and a lot of talent. In fact, I’d say that this is a pretty good starter book if you’re new to poetry because it includes such a broad selection of subjects and styles that you’re sure to find something you like.

It’s also quite a hefty collection, and it actually took me a fair few days to get through. Then there’s the fact that it also includes the bios of each of the contributors as an appendix, which I actually read because they were fascinating. The result is a great collection of contemporary poetry. Awesome!

[Iulia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bit of a mixed-bag: some poems were moving, creative, well-crafted, intriguing; some were bland or went straight past me without leaving me with much; a couple were pretentious; several were unreadable.

The most admired:

Moniza Alvi - "The Sari"
Kate Bingham - "Monogamy"
Carol Ann Duffy - "Valentine"
Sarah Howe - "Tame"
Thom Gunn - "Lament"
Glyn Maxwell - "The Byelaws" (so playful, a sheer joy)
Robin Robertson - “At Roane Head”
Jo Shapcott - “Vegetable Love”
George Szirtes - “Actually, yes”
Anne Carson - "God's Justice"
Roger McGough - "The Way Things Are"
Duncan Forbes - "Recension Day"

[🌶 peppersocks 🧦 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reflections and lessons learned:
In the 90s I enjoyed several of these collections in print and have occasionally picked them up since - still one of the best collections for a range of unrelated style and themes. As with any collection, there are some random inclusions, but I mostly enjoyed seeing the dates, personally able to remember the relatability and context for many

[Peter Longden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poetic history!

A collection to challenge and delight that should grace all library bookshelves and be included as a part of the school exam syllabus for literature such is the variety and scope of the subject matter and the creativity of poetry technique on show in the writing. Gathering together the work of the great, good and new rewarded by the Forward poetry prize, this is as enjoyable to read as it is enlightening from the first time these poems were visited and explored. First published in 2016, it is refreshing to realise that there has already been another six years of the Forward Prize from which a second collection such as this can be brought together.
A terrific collection for poetry lovers and those new to its reading.

[Jon Margetts · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are some amazing poems in this collection; there are also some dodgy ones. An excellent account of 25 years of contemporary poetry. Yeh appendix at the back which provided a short summary of each poet was of particular interest.

“And evening is come with a late sun unloading a silence,/ tiny begin-agains dancing on the night’s edge.”

[Andy Armitage · Rating 5 out of 5]

An education in contemporary poetry. Some astounding poems in here.

[Iain Mullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now! That's What I Call Poetry. Like all anthologies it's hit and miss, but the hits win.
Dig it.

[Cooch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great anthology

A high quality anthology covering the last 25 years. Most of the poems have stood the text of time. An enjoyable read too.

[L C Winters · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very oddly composed, perhaps it would be better if they were divided by theme instead of alphabetical order.

[LauraJL · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75

[jvickery88 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good, some not so good just like all collections of Poetry. 3 star would be a fair rating.

[Bethan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A range of great contemporary poetry with a slight leaning to the maudlin. I really enjoyed having my thoughts provoked. I think I might just (traitorously) prefer the Best American Poetry series though.

[Monika · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mixed bag of poems, some that I really enjoyed and some that I completely didn't get, which is expected from a collection of poems, especially by different poets.

I think it would have been really cool to have all of the poems in chronological order to see how the entries into the Forward books have changed over the years. I felt like a missed opportunity, especially when every poem had the year of publication at the start!