Chicago Poems (1916) was Carl Sandburg's first published book of verse. Written in the poet's unique, personal idiom, these poems embody a s...
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Dec 01, 2010
Lavinia
rated it: 
I thought I liked Sandburg. I read Maybe many years ago and it seemed funny, witty and different. And short, by all means. (Not in this volume)
Maybe he believes me, maybe not.
Maybe I can marry him, maybe not.
Maybe the wind on the prairie,
The wind on the sea, maybe,
Somebody, somewhere, maybe can tell.
I will lay my head on his shoulder
And when he asks me I will say yes,
Maybe.
At times, reading Chicago Poems feels like reading prose; n More...
Maybe he believes me, maybe not.
Maybe I can marry him, maybe not.
Maybe the wind on the prairie,
The wind on the sea, maybe,
Somebody, somewhere, maybe can tell.
I will lay my head on his shoulder
And when he asks me I will say yes,
Maybe.
At times, reading Chicago Poems feels like reading prose; n More...
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(2 people liked it)
Sep 15, 2010
Chris
rated it: 
The "Nigger" usage and black stereotyping aside, lol, this is a hell of a book of prose. Short and sweet, but very complex at times where a 10 line poem will take you 3, 4 minutes to divulge via the strength of metaphor. Carl Sandburg obviously a racist, I could see meant "well" I guess writing of black folk in his poems. But hell, this was 1916! for goodness sakes, lol, every white person was pretty much racist then. But still, Sandburg was top 5 or so, maybe even higher, of
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Jun 02, 2011
Peycho
rated it:
Well, by far on of the greatest collections ever of one of the greatest American poets. I really love it, not only because I live in Chicago.
And here is my little contribution to this great city:
One Poet in Chicago
This city is scary and supreme.
Its shiny lakeshore with white yachts
and seagulls and herons, tilting
quietly upon the marble waves.
The hard-blowing wind,
licking the rind of the imposing trees.
Those crazy a More...
And here is my little contribution to this great city:
One Poet in Chicago
This city is scary and supreme.
Its shiny lakeshore with white yachts
and seagulls and herons, tilting
quietly upon the marble waves.
The hard-blowing wind,
licking the rind of the imposing trees.
Those crazy a More...
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(3 people liked it)
Feb 18, 2010
Black Heart
rated it: 
For "Chicago Poems" I guess I was expecting something more. The definition of this "City of Big Shoulders" and a mythology one could cling to, the way New Yorkers define themselves against the rest of the world.
Carl Sandburg was the namesake for the junior high school I attended, in a suburb of Chicago. There were two other middle schools in that suburb, one *almost* named after a famous English statesman (Winston Churchill; Churchville's close, right?) and the ot More...
Carl Sandburg was the namesake for the junior high school I attended, in a suburb of Chicago. There were two other middle schools in that suburb, one *almost* named after a famous English statesman (Winston Churchill; Churchville's close, right?) and the ot More...
Jan 10, 2011
H. Anne
rated it:
This is probably my favorite collection of Sandburg's poetry, though I like so much of his work that it's hard to decide in truth. Living outside of Chicago and being familiar with it and with the prairieland as well, the images always strike home. For years I drove downstate, passed endless twists of barbed wire, corn, bleached barns and Sandburg always came to mind. He comes to mind often when I'm in the city. Particularly when I'm on the train there and watching the towns pass by before r
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Oct 26, 2010
Valissa
rated it: 
LET a joy keep you.
Reach out your hands
And take it when it runs by,
As the Apache dancer
Clutches his woman.
I have seen them
Live long and laugh loud,
Sent on singing, singing,
Smashed to the heart
Under the ribs
With a terrible love.
Joy always,
Joy everywhere—
Let joy kill you!
Keep away from the little deaths.
Reach out your hands
And take it when it runs by,
As the Apache dancer
Clutches his woman.
I have seen them
Live long and laugh loud,
Sent on singing, singing,
Smashed to the heart
Under the ribs
With a terrible love.
Joy always,
Joy everywhere—
Let joy kill you!
Keep away from the little deaths.
Mar 19, 2008
Joe
rated it:
I lost my notes for this book and I'm pissed about that. From what I can see, Sandburg stands somewhere between the populism of Whitman and that of Phil Levine. He's at his best when employing an expansive line and listing away. Yet, pointing the way to Levine, his enthusiasm is more tempered than Whitman's, his embrace a little more stiff and a little less subversive. His poems are shorter than Whitman's and the non logical leaps that the lists allow are a little less surprising. The last ha
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Apr 29, 2010
David
rated it:
It's actually been about a year since I read this, so I'll have to check it out again, but it's really one of the best poetry books I've ever read. (And yes, I've read more than one.) Sandburg captures the feel of people and cities just as compellingly as Robert Frost captures the feel of nature and nostalgic Americana.
Jan 18, 2012
Edmund
rated it:
Checked this out of the library.
Also got on the Kindle despite really bad formatting.
Muscular amazing poetry.
Actually made 2 blog posts out of it this week.
http://ed2dq.com/2011/12/29/carl-sandbur...
http://ed2dq.com/2011/12/27/carl-sandbur...
Should finish this tomorrow.
90% of the way thought now.
Evocative, clear and brilliant.
A must read 85 years later.
I need to read more Sandburg.
ed
Also got on the Kindle despite really bad formatting.
Muscular amazing poetry.
Actually made 2 blog posts out of it this week.
http://ed2dq.com/2011/12/29/carl-sandbur...
http://ed2dq.com/2011/12/27/carl-sandbur...
Should finish this tomorrow.
90% of the way thought now.
Evocative, clear and brilliant.
A must read 85 years later.
I need to read more Sandburg.
ed
Dec 14, 2008
Travis
rated it:
Carl Sandburg is my favorite poet and this is by far my favorite collection of poems. He gives a hard unforgiving but obviously respectful look into the second city and the midwest. The intensity of life in a great urban sprawl. Great poetry.
Jan 14, 2011
Kayla
rated it:
I wasn't too impressed with this little collection of poems. There was very few that I liked, although all were well written. They were either not dismal enough or uninspiring at times. There were maybe two or three that I really liked and that was all. Oh well better luck next time...
Oct 03, 2011
E Robert
rated it:
I really feel a sense that I need to be writing in some capacity after reading this book of poems. Keep the Chicago literary legacy alive...
Sep 08, 2010
Stephanie
rated it:
Chicago, hog butcher to the world. City of big shoulders. Awesome poem!
Jun 13, 2011
Zach
rated it:
a handful of gems (the first and last series, "chicago poems" and "other days," are the best of the seven) but many of the poems here are wholly average.
sandburg tries to channel whitman here, but even at its best it feels a little sanitized, and a lot of the poems end just as they begin to gain momentum. i'll try another sandburg at some point - probably a late-period book - but this one didn't quite satisfy.
sandburg tries to channel whitman here, but even at its best it feels a little sanitized, and a lot of the poems end just as they begin to gain momentum. i'll try another sandburg at some point - probably a late-period book - but this one didn't quite satisfy.
Aug 07, 2007
Lori
rated it:
carl sandberg is a man who knows the midwest. even if he speaks of it from the early 1900's, he is speaking directly to me and to the fields and the cities and the towns and the quailty of life i have grown up in. his words are not magic, but his vision is a sheer portrayel of the middle of our country like no one i have ever read before.
Jul 10, 2008
Joy
rated it:
I love you, Carl Sandburg. Like Whitman's Americana glorification, Chicago Poems esteems those blue collars that worked their asses off to forge my favorite city. And you can feel the architecture and the sewer steam. Best read while listening to Sufjan Stevens's Illinoise.
Sep 16, 2007
Peter
rated it:
I love this book. Sandburg captures the city and the people and a time period in a language that is startlingly easy to follow and understand. There is much celebration and study of the worker, the woman, and the immigrant. What is this guy some kind of a commie?
Oct 29, 2007
Allen
rated it:
From the author of Lincoln's biography, Chicago Poems are an excellent read. I highly recommend Carl Sandburg.
