The Complete English Poems (Penguin Classics)

Finally, I've found a poet I really like reading. Donne's poems suit me more than Shakespeare's sonnets or Poe's verse, and apart from someone like Yvor Winters, I just don't get modern poetry (apologies to Sylvia Plath fans).What rings well with me is, well, ringing well! Reading a poem out loud with a bit of drama should just sound good. That's why rap and hip hop can really be considered poetry (well, some rap and hiphop anyway).A great example of this is Shakespeare's sonnet 129 (The expense of spirit in a waste of shame/Is lust in action; and till action, lust...). Most (not all) of Shakespeare's sonnets are harder to understand than this one, which is why they don't resonate with me as well as I'd like. Donne on the other hand is different; most of what he writes in English sounds good and is immediately understandable.Not that I understand everything in these poems, there are many contemporary allusions that are lost on me, but there's enough in there that sounds very good to allow me to right away enjoy myself. Here are two great lines, which open the sonnet "Community", to illustrate what I mean by good sound.Good we must love, and must hate ill,For ill is ill, and good good still...There are problems, themselves interesting, that bring discord to a poem. For instance in Donne's England "love" rhymed with "prove" but because today these words don't, a couplet with this rhyme is marred to our 21st century ears.A personal note: I was in bed reading "Soul Made Flesh" about the discovery that the brain is the seat of consciousness, made by Oxford scholars in 17th century England. I had reached an account of how large audiences of curious onlookers gathered to see doctors perform autopsies. I put the book down and decided to dip into Donne before going to sleep. I flipped out when I read The Damp's opening lines:When I am dead, and doctors know not why,And my friends' curiosityWill have me cut up to survey each part...Talk about serendipity! Now if I had just read an explanation of these lines in the notes, they would not have meant much to me. But because reading "Soul Made Flesh" had transported me into Donne's England for a few moments, the dramatic effect of the opening was multiplied immensely.In a nutshell, I find that I love Donne and I recommend this comprehensive easy-to-carry well-annotated edition. My only negative comment is that the editing is a bit unimaginative: the editor places the sonnets in alphabetical order of title simply because there is no accepted canonical ordering... Oh well.Vincent Poirier, Tokyo

Excellent item, support and service :)!!!

This book arrived in the best condition and was early in arriving as well! This seller is the best! Can't say enough good things or recommend them highly enough!

If you love John Donne's poetry, then this is a must have collection of his poetry. If you have a Kindle, this is a functional way to take this collection with you. I have the paper volume and it is significantly larger than a Kindle Fire. So, after a "look inside" I purchased this for my Kindle. The Kindle version is as accessible as the paper volume and it retains the same page layout and spacing for the poems. The five stars are weighted towards the contents, which consist of his religious, irreligious, social, insightful, and comical poetry - usually with multiple catagories coexisting in the individual poem you're reading. The fact that the Kindle version does a good job in retaining accessability and visual layout keeps the five star rating intact.

I bought this as a Christmas gift for my husband. The book itself looks very good and will make a great addition to his library of romantic poets. In looking it over I see that it is annotated, which I was happy to see. I may snitch this book after New Years and get acquainted with his poetry myself.

To those who love Donne, there can be only one equivalent poet - Shakespeare. Donne's intellect, understanding of human emotion and sensitivities are remarkable, and his use of language to evoke and describe emotion is wonderful. But let's be honest; Donne to the modern reader can be opaque. Footnotes serving as a virtual translation are essential, and only a few will put up with this. But what a reward! Donne to the attentive listener is a wonderful guide to human nature and its intricacies.What a glorious experience!

Got this for my mom. She loves Donne. She seemed happy to get it, said it was perfect reading material before going to sleep at nights. Short, peaceful poems...

This is a massive volume with detailed notes and a preface worth reading. I am reading the Holy Sonnets. Who could not like them? I love reading them at night.