This physically handsome book has an excellent concept: a selection of poems that are not just wonderful to read, but also ideal for memorization. While some of the memorization is too difficult -- like other reviewers, I think Frost offers better candidates for memorization than "Mending Wall" -- other poems are well suited to committing to memory, like cummings' "anyone lived in a pretty how town;" Hopkins' "Spring and Fall;" and, yes, Lear's "The Owl and the Pussycat." The acts of memorization gives ownership to the poem unlike other reading experiences, and provides sustenance long after the book is read.
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I can't memorize anything so I'm not even trying, but I do enjoy reading the selections. I like poetry in small doses and I tend to prefer conventional poetry (read: not modern free verse), so this book is perfect. Reading poetry is different than reading prose, and I find poetry challenging enough that I don't spend much time at it. So this book is great for picking up, reading a poem, then putting it down to absorb the poem. ( )