Rose (New Poets of America)
by Li-Young Lee
|
|
Sign in to Goodreads to see your friends' reviews of this book.
discuss this book
friend reviews (0)
To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.
lists with this book
Where's the love? Add this book to your favorite list.
other reviews (showing 1-20 of 365)
Read in March, 2008
Li-Young Lee, Rose (Boa Editions, 1986)
I am a longtime fan of Li-Young Lee's work, but I somehow never got round to reading Rose, his first book, until now. Sometimes going back and reading the first published work of an author is interesting in that you can see how s/he developed over the years (this is reviewer-code for “man, this book is not nearly as good as I was expecting”); such is not at all the case with Lee, whose first pieces are just as polished, professional, and deeply abso...more
I am a longtime fan of Li-Young Lee's work, but I somehow never got round to reading Rose, his first book, until now. Sometimes going back and reading the first published work of an author is interesting in that you can see how s/he developed over the years (this is reviewer-code for “man, this book is not nearly as good as I was expecting”); such is not at all the case with Lee, whose first pieces are just as polished, professional, and deeply abso...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 1995
i have read and reread the poems in this book so many times.
i first encountered lee at the geraldine dodge poetry festical back in 94. i randomly decided to attend his seminar and his readings really made an impression on me.
here are a few things i remember about what he said about his process of writing. (i am heavily paraphrasing due to my terrible memory.)
"Language often fails to represent what you're trying to say. Instead, it outlines the boundary of the void, the th...more
i first encountered lee at the geraldine dodge poetry festical back in 94. i randomly decided to attend his seminar and his readings really made an impression on me.
here are a few things i remember about what he said about his process of writing. (i am heavily paraphrasing due to my terrible memory.)
"Language often fails to represent what you're trying to say. Instead, it outlines the boundary of the void, the th...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in September, 1998
"Slender memory, stay with me." I sat at a small dinner gathering with a group of colleagues and Li Young Lee. He was thoughtful, humble, conversational--all that you would hope for in a poet. "We look in 10,000 directions and all we see is ourselves." Lee's writing is so pure, so rich in imagery. A powerful opening force into the reader's self.
From Visions and Interpretations:
"The old book I finished reading
I've since read again and again.
And what was far ...more
From Visions and Interpretations:
"The old book I finished reading
I've since read again and again.
And what was far ...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2002
recommends it for:
um. Yep.
After re-reading this book recently, I've decided to bump my rating from a 3.75 to a solid 4.0. I like his plain use of language. Also cool, is the subtle infusion of his Asian heritage, and his ability to allude to it without relying on it for substance. Lately I've been exposed to strained "cultural" literature, knee-deep with political agendas, and awash with serious social taboos, so much unrest and muck eventually gives me gas. Sometimes simple whole-grain words for whole-grain...more
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
I am not a huge poetry fan, but this is my favorite poet. I love his spare poems and I love that his poems are not limited to romance or relationship problems. At the same time, these are some of the most sensual poems I know. There is one about his mother unwinding her hair at night for his father that I love.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in June, 2008
recommended to Mads P. by:
Amazon
All of the poems were really beautiful or sublime, some almost made me cry, but I can't help thinking that it was a bit sentimental. There was almost a rhythm to the repeated imagery that felt dreamlike. It was a good read, but I prefer poetry that is more about ideas and less about the personal.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in June, 2006
recommended to Stacia by:
Megrecommends it for: undergraduate English students who want to say they're into a seminal Chinese-American poet.
I mean, I liked it all right. Not to be lame, but you can't write a free verse poem comparing your parents' old age, faded magnolias, and rainy days without coming off as a little trite. There were some good ones in there, though.
Like this review?
yes
(1 person liked it)
add a comment
This is the very first book I read by Li-Young Lee. I would highly recommend it. He combines the personal with the exquisitely well-written in his poetry. I learn something new about writing each time I read his work.
Like this review?
yes
1 comments
Read in January, 2003
Absolutely amazing. Born Indonesian Chinese, Lee is an American writer dealing strongly with family and relationships in this early work of his. Simply written, but heartwrenching. Probably my favorite poet.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Another beautiful collection of poems. I'm more into the abstract and surreal, but when genius rears its quirky head . . . you sit up and take note. Take notes as you read, but whatever you do, read. . .
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Has a copy to sell/swap
—
Read in July, 2007
just not my favorite li-young lee book, I was really hoping to like it better, especially since I loved "book of my nights" and "city in which i love you". I'm not sure what wasn't working for me...
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in October, 2006
I keep going back to this collection of poems. They are accessible, earthy, and beautiful. As with any collection, some poems touch you--stay with you longer--than others.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in October, 1998
Brilliant, just brilliant. Some of the best poems I've ever read (which I told Lee himself when I met him about five years ago): sensitive and observant, fresh and beautiful.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
This book pushes lyricis to 100% but never once becomes sentimental. I reread it at least once a year and cannot stop admiring it.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in January, 2005
read "persimmons."
the tragic thing is that he came to goshen freshman year, and i didn't discover his work until the year after.
the tragic thing is that he came to goshen freshman year, and i didn't discover his work until the year after.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Simple but elegantly written poems. I imagine it is very difficult to write like this without coming across as trite.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
A beauty of an Asian-American poet trying to make sense of love and moms and wives and babies.
This one sings.
This one sings.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
if i hear another poet use a rose as a symbol i will symbolically vomit. way too sentimental for me.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Read in April, 2007
Click here: www.robertpeake.com/archives/3...
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
Great poems. Contemporary poet. Asian American writer, reflected in poems, but subtly.
Like this review?
yes
add a comment
