The Poet's Handbook

by Judson Jerome

Judson Jerome's years of experience as both a poet and a teacher come together to expertly guide you through the poetry writing process. You'll learn how to merge mechanics with art to produce poetry that will endure. You'll discover the meanings and uses of a wide variety of poetic terms, illustrated with the works of such poets as Dylan Thomas, Robert Frost, and John Gardner. Jerome also includes a versification chart, an index to poetry terms, and indexes to poems/poets quoted in the book, making this book equally valuable for quick reference or in-depth study.

Genres: Poetry, Writing, Nonfiction, Reference

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1980

Reviews

[Aj Sterkel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this in the hope that it would help me understand poetry. Now I’m pretty sure that I will never understand poetry.

[Natasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I appreciate the author’s frankness about the state of poetry and the market. He is loyal to form and meter, sometimes to a point with which I disagree, but the text is helpful nonetheless.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

An invaluable book. This breaks down what poetry is: metered speech. Nothing more, nothing less. He walks you through how to read meter, and why it is important to write in meter instead of prose in many cases. I liked the examples he uses, one in particular, of Robert Frost, who wrote a poem about a breakup. Nothing 'poetic' about it in our current use of the word, but it's actually a complex meter that he's experimenting with. Very elucidating, demystifies poetry, allows you to enjoy it. I think in that way, I can honestly say it is life changing, because before, poetry was obtuse, I didn't understand it. I never enjoyed it unless it was rhyming, because I was trying to figure out what made it poetry. Not anymore. Can't recommend enough.

[Ben Hartwiger · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about Jerome's stance in this book, but I learned a great deal about poetry. It remains to be seen, but I do think that this book will have a lasting impact on the way I think about and approach poetry.

[Joshua Centanni · Rating 3 out of 5]

A helpful introduction to reading and writing poetry.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Judson Jerome explains the intricacies of poetry with clear examples. Clearly defining a wide variety of terms such as metric forms, accentual syllabic rhythms, rhyme, stanzas, strophes, and poetic structures, the reader is challenged to reconsider what poetry is and to develop a deeper appreciation of poetry.

The intended audience is poets. Interspersed among the critical analysis of poems and the definitions is advice for poets on expanding style, revising poems, and publishing works. This glimpse into the world of poetry is both reassuring to a lone poet and a bit scary. Judson Jerome simultaneously admires a poem and dissects it. In Chapter 14, "Into the Maelstrom: Sensationalism in Modern Poetry", he quotes from T.S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" saying that it is one of his favorite poems. He then proceeds to critique the nonsensical nature of the imagery as well as the poet's grammar. Reading this, a poet gains insights into the ways that poetry can be understood, appreciated, and criticized.

Yet even those who read a poem and shrug their shoulders in incomprehension can enter the poetic world through this book. The examples are given in a variety of forms. Explanation of the meaning of poems accompany direct quotes. When Judson Jerome wants a reader to focus on a metrical form, the quote reformatted to show where the accents occur. This clearly illustrates the point being made. Combined with such clear examples are many challenging, open ended questions. These questions invite the reader to reread passages and look up other poetic examples not be included in this book. Anyone can use this book as an entry to the world of poetry.

[Spike Gomes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is absolutely essential in learning how to master metrical lyrical poetry. It gives you an extremely technical analysis of how poetic meter works and how to properly incorporate flourishes like rhyme and alliteration.

Jerome is a poet of the old school, who loves the traditions and practices of formalistic poetry and rues the obscurantist and "anything goes" practices of modern "academic" poetry, correctly foreseeing over 30 years ago, that without form and without universal themes, poetry would become irrelevant and unknown to the average person, just an arena of self-important non-entities displaying craftless navel gazing.

I've not found a resource better in unfolding the mechanics of the art and craft of formal poetry in the English language. Do you yourself a favor and get it. Certainly my copy is well worn with use.

[Karl Jennings · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is actually a re-reading of this book for me. It's a great book for both the beginning poet as well as anyone wanting to understand the structure of poetry better. Judson Jerome was the poetry editor for Writer's magazine for several years before he passed away. Much of his years of experience with poetry is collected here in an easy-to-understand style.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the art of poetry.

[Acturi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well written how-to book of structuralist poetry. He explains meter in a way that actually makes you understand why you would use it and why it works, rather than just shouting "SHAKESPEARE!" and expecting you to do it.

He has a serious dislike of free verse, though. So if you're the sort of person who likes to write free verse, and you're ego can't take people talking crap about it, avoid this book.

[Xenophon Hendrix · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to learn how to write metrical verse, this is the first book to read.

[Ken Barnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to write, understand, or just enjoy poetry. You need this book. Plain and simple, you need this book.

[Douglas Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good.

[John Wise · Rating 4 out of 5]

No-nonsense handbook for the nuts and bolts of poetry. Appropriate for in-depth study or for reference, thanks to a well-written index.

[Writer Chick · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this in about a month and wasn't impress I've found better articles online.