Penguin's Poems For Love

by Laura Barber (Editor and Introduction)

Here are poems to take you on a journey from the 'suddenly' of love at first sight to the 'truly, madly, deeply' of infatuation and on to the 'eternally' of love that lasts beyond the end of life, along the way taking in flirtation, passion, fury, betrayal and broken hearts. Bringing together the greatest love poetry from around the world and through the ages, ranging from W. H. Auden to William Shakespeare, John Donne to Emily Dickinson, Robert Browning to Roger McGough, this new anthology will delight, comfort and inspire anyone who has ever tasted love - in any of its forms.

Genres: Poetry, Romance, Classics, Anthologies, Fiction

400 pages, Paperback

First published October 29, 2009

Reviews

[עדאל · Rating 5 out of 5]

This poetry collection is a knife to the heart, a dagger to the lungs, flames licking tender skin, and akin to crawling through a dark, barren valley of agony. It also carries within its pages a fragrance so sweet and unique: it is spring's first flower pushing up obstinately between tufts of tired dirt, a slice of smiling yellow sunshine, and the violently passionate, almost childlike fervor that seizes and clutches the heart of one drowning in their lover's eyes. Love, in all its lengths, widths, shades, seasons, tones, occurrences, manifestations, demises, fulfillments, growths, and regressions, shows itself in these pages. What is so wonderful is the comfort that comes with being stabbed by all these poems, seeing your very sensations⁠—both the tragic and the happily ever after⁠—framed and adorned with such beautiful words. It is also comforting to know that no matter what kind of love brutalizes a person, life goes on, and sometimes writing a poem about it is the best expression of healing⁠—or of joy everlasting. Scars can turn into works of art.

The collection is divided into sections that answer the question,

...how do I love thee?

Suddenly, secretly, nearly, tentatively, haplessly,
Incurably, impatiently, superlatively, persuasively, passionately,
In the morning after,
Greedily, truly, madly, deeply,
From a distance, with a vow,
Happily ever after...
Treacherously, brutally, bitterly, finally, while forsaken,
Regretfully, fatally, indifferently, after death...
And maybe even Eternally.

"How do I love thee?
I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears, of all my life! - and, if God choose,
I shall love thee better after death."
-Elizabeth Barrett Browning

[sophie esther · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you find your heart aching for a dagger to pierce it, look no further! This wonderful poetry collection offers various blades to choose from!

How doth thy dagger wound thee?

Passionately? I'll offer you "Rhetorical Questions" by Hugo Williams. From a distance? My personal favourite is "The Letter" by Amy Lowell. A wound that exists happily ever after? Try "For C." by Richard Wilbur. A wound you regret? "Recession Day" by Duncan Forbes came at my heart with particular violence. Just to name a few.


I watched the still and dewy lawn,
The pear-tree boughs hung white above you;
I listened to you till dawn,
And I half forgot I did not love you.
~ Edith Nesbit, Villeggiature

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok I know I am a fella and we don't do love well.......... so where do you think I get my chat up line ideas from?? Hell would freeze over before I could come up with something suitable. This anthology of Love poetry covers all aspects of Love and on the spine reminds us just in case with Love, lust, life, loss and love.

There are so many poems that I can identify with that it would be embarassing, but what the heck, I am sure there are many men that could recognise the sentiments of Philip Larkin's "Talking in Bed" or even Ted Hughes' "Lovesong" There are so many different poems that can describe love and there is bound to be a few poems for everyone.

[Rikke · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Love, lust, life, loss, love"

This is something more than just a beautiful collection of love poems wrapped in a pleasing bookcover. This anthology contains poems covering every aspect of love, from W.B. Yeats' daydreamingly beautiful "He Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven" to Vicki Feaver's lethal "Lily Pond". Despair, agony and jealousy are often love's companions, along with the heart-fluttering sensation of butterflies in the stomach. And this collecting offers it all. It tells of both the light and the dark.

The poems are truly well-chosen, varying from well-known classic poets such as Shakespeare, to new modern simplistic storytellers such as Jacob Sam-La Rose. It contains grand epic tales of love, and little everyday-scenes, making you sigh with all its sweetness and vivid imagery. Some of the poems are cryptic, others are pretty straight-forward, and some consists of only two lines. The variation is great in both time, situation and place, introducing me to new favorite poems along with old treasures.

Among the poems I loved most of all were;

"Vision" by May Theilgaard Watts.
"The Sick Rose" by William Blake.
"Things That Could Happen" by Jacob Sam La-Rose.
"La Belle Dame sans Merci" by John Keats.
"Reprise" by Ogden Nash.
"Possibly" by Lesléa Newman.
"Ironing" by Olivia McCanon.
"Strawberries" by Edwin Morgan.
"Her" by Jackie Kay.
"Having a Coke with You" by Frank O'Hara.
"Invisible Kisses" by Lemn Sissay.
"Somewhere I Have Never Travelled, Gladly Beyond" by E. E. Cummings.
"Dance Me to the End of Love" by Leonard Cohen,
and of course the already mentioned "He Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven" by my beloved W.B. Yeats.

[Julotlinde · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been reading poems out of this collection for two years!!! I have carried this book around for 2 years! I have moved 4 times in that time and this book has always been on my shelf next to my bed. But I’m finally done! Thank the lord!

It was a fine collection. I didn’t love all the poems and I sometimes (a lot of times) forgot about this collection as I just didn’t really care for jt. There were a lot of good poems in it but also many I couldn’t get or enjoy. But still, I think this collection is good enough nice to have. I think it is also a nice way to start reading poetry and to kinda see which poets you enjoy.

Hopefully the next poem collection i begin will not take me 2 years to finish

[Chris Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovingly curated by Barber, who has selected poems for the many different stages and conditions of being in or out of love chosen in response to Elizabeth Barrett Browning's resounding question, "How do I love thee..?" (secretly, greedily, regretfully etc.). A broad selection of contemporary and classics. Beautiful cover design by Richard Green complements the pretty internal logic.

[cypress · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've neglected writing a review until now because there is so much to say about this beautiful collection. To start, the structure of it is wonderful: it is divided into chapters, each representing an answer to the question "How do I love thee?" (Eternally, Bitterly, Superlatively, Passionately, Fatally, etc.)

Each section has a set of hand-picked poems from a diverse range of poets and authors that perfectly encapsulates the emotion that the section is meant to represent. The poetry itself too, was immersive and well-chosen for the most part, and made me feel a lot of emotions.
I also discovered a lot of poets and styles of poetry that I hadn't been exposed to previously.

All in all, an amazing collection that I enjoyed reading and would recommend to anyone who has ever loved (or anyone, really, it's a book of good poetry).

[Audrey Ng · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beautiful collection of poetry by penguin classics. There are more types of love than the number of stars in the sky and this collection certainly shows as such. I loved discovering classics like “Annabel Lee” and passages from “Paradise Lost” but also the works of some lesser known poets and writers. I love love love poetry and if you know me, you know that I wouldn’t mind reading just pages and pages of poetry.

[Hayley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really well rounded collection of love poems. Admittedly there was more traditional poetry than modern but there will still quite a few modern poems. I really liked the way that the poetry progressed under the themes. Eg suddenly, tentatively, passionately, brutally, eternally. I am finding I appreciate anthologies far more than individual poetry books by a poet. This way I discover some wonderful poems and can also see a reoccurrence of poets I like that I can then seek out without the fear of being disappointed.

[Franzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

loooved it

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

superb

[Valeria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a lovely collection. The separation of themes using the question “How do I love thee” was genius. There is also a great mix of old and new, long and short, traditional and modern etc., so everyone can find a poem to love (ha!).

I found poems that made me think, made me sad, made me feel lonely, made me happy and made me yearn.

I will definitely be revisiting this collection, whether it be to look at the poems I’ve marked as favourites or peruse a theme and find new ones.

[Phoebe Smythe · Rating 4 out of 5]

what a beautiful collection of poetry!

[Muna Al Otaiba · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book is like flying between clouds of emotions #iLove

[Roos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bought this in the city of Love itself at the Shakespeare and Company.
Best bookstore ever.

[Μ · Rating 5 out of 5]

«How do I love thee? Let me count ways» Έτσι ξεκινάει το ποίημα της Elizabeth Barrett Browning και συνεχίζει δίνοντας 8 τρόπους με τους οποίους αγαπά το πρόσωπο στο οποίο απευθύνεται. Με αφορμή αυτό το ποίημα χτίζεται ολόκληρη η φιλοσοφία του παρόντος βιβλίου.

H Laura Barber συλλέγει δεκάδες ερωτικά ποιή��ατα κυρίως αγγλόφωνα με ελάχιστα να είναι μεταφρασμένα και τα χωρίζει σε 26 κεφάλαια, σε 26 εκφάνσεις του ίδιου συναισθήματος. Όπως δηλώνει και η ίδια στην –καλογραμμένη και ενδιαφέρουσα- εισαγωγή της, οι λέξεις “I love you” είναι από τις ομορφότερες και σημαντικότερες σε κάθε γλώσσα. Όμως ακόμη και έτσι, αυτές οι τρεις λέξεις δεν μεταφέρουν πάντοτε το ακριβές βάθος του συναισθήματος που περιγράφουν.

Ξαφνικά, μυστικά, διστακτικά, αθεράπευτα, ανυπόμονα, υπερβολικά, παθιασμένα, άπληστα, βαθιά, από μακριά, πικραμένα, μοιραία, αδιάφορα, μετά θάνατον, παντοτινά… και πόσοι άλλοι τρόποι δεν υπάρχουν να βιώσουμε την αγάπη!

Τα ποιήματα που βρίσκει κανείς στη συλλογή είναι πολλά και διάφορα. Κλασσικά και μοντέρνα. Σονέτα και ελεύθερα. Παλιά και νέα. Δεν υπάρχει χωροχρονικός περιορισμός στην επιλογή τους, κάτι που στα μάτια μου έκανε τη συλλογή τόσο πολύτιμη.

Ξεκίνησα το βιβλίο το Μάρτιο του 2014 και το είχα στο μυαλό μου από το 2010, όταν το είχα πρωτοδεί. Μέσα σε αυτά τα τρία χρόνια που το έχω στα χέρια μου έχω βιώσει πολλά και έχω στοχαστεί πολύ. Υπήρχαν περίοδοι που διάβαζα μανιωδώς τα ποιήματά του και περίοδοι που δεν ασχολούμουν για καιρό. Η ανάγνωση της συλλογής είχε γίνει πολύ προσωπική διαδικασία, σχεδόν θα έλεγα… αισθηματική. Ήταν ξεχωριστή αίσθηση να έχω στα χέρια μου τις φωνές τόσων πολλών και διαφορετικών ανθρώπων, επώνυμων και ανώνυμων, ακαδημαϊκών και απλών να μοιράζονται τις αναμνήσεις, τις σκέψεις, τους καημούς και τις χαρές τους μαζί μου σχετικά με αυτό το απέραντο και άπιαστο συναίσθημα που ονομάζουμε αγάπη.

[Ben Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

well this was beautiful. Firstly there was a great collection of poems across a wide array of eras and styles and from a great assortment of poets. The poems also collective limned many different manifestations of love, in part due to the fact that each of the 26 chapters was a different kind of loving: suddenly, nearly, secretly, tentatively, haplessly, incurably, impatiently, superlatively, persuasively, passionately, the morning after, greedily, truly madly deeply, from a distance, with a vow, happily ever after, treacherously, brutally, bitterly, finally, forsaken, regretfully, fatally, indifferently, after death and eternally.

Not going to lie some of the poems made me cry which is always a sign that they're good.

The only weak point was the notable lack of lgbt poems but that's not necessarily Barber's fault, moreso due to persistent and intrusive heteronormativity. But that minor shortcoming is nowhere near enough to detract a star from this breath-taking anthology that will get your heart beating double time in 26 different ways.

[Iulia · Rating 5 out of 5]

How fitting that I should love a book of love poems! Kudos to Laura Barber for the architecture of the book & the selection of poems, I had a delightful time reading this.

Personally, gems:

"Los Alamos Mon Amour" (Simon Barraclough)
"Dubwise" (Jean 'Binta' Breeze - you've got to listen to this one)
"The Song of Wandering Aengus" (W.B. Yeats)
"The Unpredicted" (John Heath-Stubbs)
"Goblin Market" (Christina G. Rossetti)
"My Belovèd Compares Herself to a Pint of Stout" (Paul Durcan)
"Valentine" (John Fuller)
"Love on a Farm" (D.H. Lawrence)
"Orpheus in Soho" (Rosemary Tonks)
"Donal Og" (Anonymous Irish poem) - one of my all time faves
"La Figlia Che Piange" (T.S. Eliot)
"The Lady of Shalott" (Alfred, Lord Tennyson)
"Carrefour" (Amy Lowell)
"The Other Two" (Sylvia Plath)
“Scaffolding” (Seamus Heaney)

"Because it is bitter,
And because it is my heart."

[Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved reading this collection.

With any anthology collection of poetry with different there will be a lot of hits and misses but this was a very thoughtful collection and you can tell barber was very considerate with the poems she choose for each section.

I have learned a lot about my poetry preferences from this and it was so lovely to read such a broad collection to have that opportunity.

Poetry is stunning, words are everything and I am very happy for reading this.

[Tandava Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good, big collection. Lots of classics, and lots of new ones (to me, at least). I like the organization scheme, grouping poems into categories that answer the question “how shall I love thee?” without regard for similarity of style, time period, etc. It does include some more negative categories, but because they’re grouped this way, it was easy to skim or skip those.

[Eileen · Rating 4 out of 5]

So many wonderful poems about love! And organized easily for whatever you need. This is a great reference book for writers, or a good one to add to your personal collection.

There were some rather passionate poems, so maybe not one to offer to children without guidance.

[Iris Evelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

These were really good, I really liked them! Favourites were 'When I Heard at the Close of the Day' (Walt Whitman), 'XIV' from Sonnets from the Portuguese (Elizabeth Barrett Browning), 'Life Story' (Tennessee Williams), and 'Maundy Thursday' (Wilfred Owen)

[Elliott James Fraser · Rating 4 out of 5]

No poetry anthology can deliver all things to all people and for me this was too full of the ol' classic writers and didn't get very far with it at first.
However I keep coming back to it.
It falls open now on Ann Stevenson's 'Sous-entendu' and that is just fine with me.

[Daniela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the way it was organised, and it had some star poems.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s always so lovely to revisit this book of love poems. I just adore the categories and reading about the different types of love.

[Lola · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very sweet selection!

[mila ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

*4.5!

“I’ll love you forever,
I can’t stop time.
This is you on my skin somewhere
in the form of sand.” - Sunset II

[kat on the mat · Rating 5 out of 5]

read a couple poems to my close friend and they just started crying and in public too

BEAUTIFUL POEMS

oh and im crying too

thanks for that

[Lily · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a beautiful collection! I loved the different sections, and have the stages of love were varied.

The only chip on the cup - so to speak - would be its underrepresented queer love diversity.

[Liesel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it sooooo much 😍