World's Most Treasured Love Poems

by Suheil Bushrui (Editor)

The only truly global collection of love poetry, bringing together the most stunning and inspiring poems from all around the worldThis beautiful collection of love poems gathers together thousands of years of timeless verse from around the world. From Shakespeare to Rossetti, traditional English classics sit alongside the works of Eastern writers such as Ibn 'Arabi and Rumi, as well as lesser known gems from the indigenous peoples of Africa, Australasia, and the Americas. Exploring the many facets of love – desire, devotion, delirium, joy, and sorrow – this uniquely diverse volume offers us wisdom from across the ages and reminds us of the bonds we all share.

Genres: Poetry

175 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 8, 2018

About the author

Suheil Bushrui is the foremost translator and interpreter of Anglo-Irish literature in the Arab world, and has published critical studies in Arabic and English on W. B. Yeats, John Millington Synge, James Joyce and Samuel Beckett. He was the first Arab national to be appointed to the Chair of English and Anglo-Irish Literature at the American University of Beirut, and has also served as Chairman of the International Association for the Study of Anglo-Irish Literature (ISAIL). He is currently the Baha'i Chair for World Peace in the Center for International Development and Conflict Management (CIDCM) at the University of Maryland.

Reviews

[Anna Hurley · Rating 5 out of 5]

My appreciation for poetry outside of leaving cert English has been reignited! I particularly loved the poetry included by William Blake, who I was not familiar with before starting this. I found the selection endearing and incredibly pleasant to read! I have definitely been inspired to return to the habit of reading and writing poetry, which held enormous importance in my life as a child/young teenager :)

[dangerous at every speed · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really appreciate Bushrui's efforts in compiling many (if not mostly) non-western poets in this anthology; they are so often overlooked or ignored. Some of these poems were truly beautiful, but a fair number were quite inaccessible, so that decreased the overall enjoyment factor. I was also surprised that no Pablo Neruda was included, being a significant love poet, and a non-western one to boot.

[Beck · Rating 3 out of 5]

My favourite poems were not in here (sonnet XVII by Pablo Neruda and the relic by John Donne) so that's a bit disappointing :-( I will also compile a list of all my favourite poems from here, it's not nearly as much as I hoped it would be, but I guess that's okay. I still enjoyed reading through it, it was nice getting my feet wet in a bit of poetry 😊 also I love the idea of this book! I hope I can collect some more 😊 also here are my faves if you would like my curated selection of love poems 💘

"No relationship between two people is genuine or true
until each to the other speaks as 'I' instead of 'you'." - From the Arabic (v)

Percy Bysshe Shelley - Love's Philosophy (10)

Hilary M. Freeman - from Days of Creation (33)

Pierre de Ronsard - Love's Comparings (46)

Anonymous - Husband and Wife (57)

Yehuda HaLevi - My Sweetheart's Dainty Lips ... (58)

Anonymous - Mass of Love (72-73)

Diarmad O'Curnain - Love's Despair (74-75)

Anonymous - from Love Lyrics (100)

John Millington Synge - The Meeting (103)

Sara Teasdale - The Kiss (135)

Andrei Voznesensky - Dead Still (136)

Arthur Symons - Leves Amores (147)

Edwin Markham - Outwitted (160)

Anonymous - Love Song (171)

[Paul Clarkson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good to see there are no 1-star ratings here, which would be a nonsense as the range of good poetry in this little book is extensive.
I have read these out loud for myself and partner over the last year. Some, even with doing that make little sense (The Romantics easily spring to mind!), some are beautiful and/or moving.
I’ve engaged well with many Arabic poets in particular and may be inspired enough to read more. Out loud makes such a difference. Reminds me of my A’ level classes.
But first, the lyrics of Bob Dylan and others. Out loud!

[Katie Kilgannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure I agree with “worlds most treasured” because soooo many of them were so obscure - what do you mean I’m reading poems translated from ancient Egyptian? Some fella wrote a poem about his wife evading the cattle tax in hieroglyphics and I’m reading it in 2025. Mad shit

[Tatiana Malatesta · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8

[Lucie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The poems weren't massively varied and I would have preferred to see some more modern poetry included alongside some of the more traditional choices.

[Lillian Halliday · Rating 1 out of 5]

dnf

[Sasha · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a strange mismash of poems that were 95% dubiously translated and I just don't understand how you mess up such an easy theme.