Thomas Hardy: The Complete Poems
by Thomas Hardy
On This Page
Description
Thomas Hardy's first love was always poetry. It was not until 1898, when he was fifty-eight years old, having already established his reputation with fourteen novels and over forty short stories, that his first book of poetry, Wessex Poems was published. For the final thirty years of his life he abandoned fiction and devoted himself entirely to poetry. It is a tribute to his remarkable powers of creativity that he is now not only regarded as one of the most important English novelists but is show more also recognised as a poet of major stature and ever increasing popularity. The Complete Poems , edited by James Gibson, includes all of Hardy's prolific output of more than nine hundred poems, complemented by a detailed notes section. Collected in this single volume are his eight books of verse, all the uncollected poems, 'Domicilium' and the songs from The Dynasts. This new edition contains an additional poem, The Sound of Her . show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
This is a review of the particular edition I own and I'm writing it to vent my feelings on the ugliness of the book. Mine is the hardback of the Palgrave Macmillan edition and it's available (in the UK, at least) 'print on demand'. If you look at 'Popular covers', you'll see a couple of rather nice-looking covers with a scene of a country church. This is what Amazon shows. You will also see a grey and ugly one with a strange little box with spikes sticking out of it, this in paler grey. It looks like a science textbook. This is what actually turned up on my doormat. I've never seen a hardback with a more glaringly inappropriate cover and I assume it's a standard cover for all their 'print on demands' (and, even then, I suspect the show more designer had some warped grudge against the world in general). Not an ornament to anyone's bookshelves.
I suppose I should say a bit about the contents. It contains every poem Hardy is known to have written (unfortunately, it seems to be the only hardback available that does so). They are set out in clear and reasonably-sized print. There is little else: a very short introduction and some notes on publication history of and changes made to individual poems, and the usual indices at the back. It also has a small number of illustrations that Hardy did for the original publications.
I'm not going to star it. I'd have to give it five stars for the contents and half a star, at most, for the actual book and an average wouldn't do justice to my feelings on either. show less
I suppose I should say a bit about the contents. It contains every poem Hardy is known to have written (unfortunately, it seems to be the only hardback available that does so). They are set out in clear and reasonably-sized print. There is little else: a very short introduction and some notes on publication history of and changes made to individual poems, and the usual indices at the back. It also has a small number of illustrations that Hardy did for the original publications.
I'm not going to star it. I'd have to give it five stars for the contents and half a star, at most, for the actual book and an average wouldn't do justice to my feelings on either. show less
The last thirty years of Thomas Hardy's life was devoted to poetry. During this time after he had eschewed novel-writing he wrote hundreds of poems. These poems spanned a variety of styles including: satires, love poems, lyrics, reveries, and songs. The topics also spanned a great number including some focused on the Wessex countryside where he set his well-known novels. The result of all this poetic creation is a collection that rivals that of the greatest poets in the English-speaking world. I would recommend this volume to all who revere fine poetry.
Ratings
Members
- Recently Added By
Lists
In Our Time books
4,934 works; 2 members
Author Information
476+ Works 85,026 Members
Thomas Hardy was born on June 2, 1840, in Higher Bockhampton, England. The eldest child of Thomas and Jemima, Hardy studied Latin, French, and architecture in school. He also became an avid reader. Upon graduation, Hardy traveled to London to work as an architect's assistant under the guidance of Arthur Bloomfield. He also began writing poetry. show more How I Built Myself a House, Hardy's first professional article, was published in 1865. Two years later, while still working in the architecture field, Hardy wrote the unpublished novel The Poor Man and the Lady. During the next five years, Hardy penned Desperate Remedies, Under the Greenwood Tree, and A Pair of Blue Eyes. In 1873, Hardy decided it was time to relinquish his architecture career and concentrate on writing full-time. In September 1874, his first book as a full-time author, Far from the Madding Crowd, appeared serially. After publishing more than two dozen novels, one of the last being Tess of the d'Urbervilles, Hardy returned to writing poetry--his first love. Hardy's volumes of poetry include Poems of the Past and Present, The Dynasts: Part One, Two, and Three, Time's Laughingstocks, and The Famous Tragedy of the Queen of Cornwall. From 1833 until his death, Hardy lived in Dorchester, England. His house, Max Gate, was designed by Hardy, who also supervised its construction. Hardy died on January 11, 1928. His ashes are buried in Poet's Corner at Westminster Abbey. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Some Editions
Awards and Honors
Notable Lists
Work Relationships
Is contained in
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title*
- The complete poems
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 469
- Popularity
- 64,880
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (4.05)
- Languages
- English, Finnish
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 11
- ASINs
- 3
