Collected Poems

I would submit that Edna St. Vincent Millay may be the most underrated poet in the English language.

Was she a formalist, and therefore out of vogue? Too bad. Was she a naughty girl, and therefore sent to a place less than nice when she died? More power to her; I'm sure she felt right at home.

The woman who, as an undergrad at Vassar, defied the president of the college to expel her and was told "What? "And have a banished Shelley on my doorstep?" -- and who then allegedly responded "On those terms, I think I can continue to live in this hell hole" -- was obviously not someone to be trifled with.

Cheeky? No doubt. A hellcat? She could've set the wind on fire -- then have doused the flames in a wink with wit alone.

Every one of the sonnets show more in this collection is a gift to the reader. This book alone is worth a year's tuition at Vassar -- and would no doubt prove more valuable to the few who may be caught there (or at Smith, Wellesley, Barnard, Mount Holyoke, or Bryn Mawr) against their will. It's too bad Radcliffe merged with Harvard only well after her death. The only wonder is that she didn't rise from the grave to stop it -- or, instead, lead the movement to have Harvard merge with Radcliffe. show less

This was a decent collection of poetry by the famed poet, noted for her simple rhymes and layered poems. I found most of them to be palatable and that they were briskly able to be read through, one after the other, in succession to gain a greater understanding of the poet herself and what she thought, felt, and lived for. Overall, a good read and one for poetry enthusiasts.

3.25 stars.

I’m not rating this just because I was mostly just trying to see if I could get more into poetry and I just think I prefer to read individual poems that I really like rather than a bind up from one author. I liked some of these poems and was bored by others but I definitely Milay is a very interesting poet and I think many people who are more into poetry would get a lot more out of this book than I did.

I love this book. I don't read much poetry, but Edna St. Vincent Millay is one of the best poets I've ever read. Wonderful stuff.

not my favorite poet, but enjoyed some of her poems.
one of my faves:

"ebb"
i know what my heart is like
since your love died;
it is like a hollow ledge
Holding a little pool
Left there by the tide,
a little tepid pool
drying inward from the edge.

Good beyond all hope.