Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
156th out of 198 books
—
80 voters
Selected Poems
by
Mary Ruefle
"Mary Ruefle is one of the brilliant American poets of our time. Her work combines the spiritual desperation of Dickinson with the rhetorical virtuosity of Wallace Stevens. The result is a poetry at once ornate and intense; linguistically marvelous, yes, but also as visceral as anything you are likely to encounter."—Tony Hoagland
"In poems striking for their vivid, playful,...more
"In poems striking for their vivid, playful,...more
Hardcover, 176 pages
Published
August 17th 2010
by Wave Books
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
250)
Well, this was as stunning as people have told me. One of the most original and engaging poets writing today, as far as I'm concerned. Truly one of a kind (although if I tried to describe her through the lens of other poets, I would say she recalls both Wislawa Szymborska's occasionally gothic sense of humor, and Dean Young's mode of surprising juxtapositions).
Lyrical, moving, sharp, weird--I have major love for this book.
Favorite poems-- "The Beautiful is Negative," "Timberland," "Cul-de-sac,"...more
Lyrical, moving, sharp, weird--I have major love for this book.
Favorite poems-- "The Beautiful is Negative," "Timberland," "Cul-de-sac,"...more
Though Mary Ruefle’s poems bear little influence of Frost, perhaps no contemporary American poet better embodies the great bard’s famous adage that a poem “begins in delight and ends in wisdom.” The recent recipient of the 2011 William Carlos Williams Award, Ruefle’s Selected Poems is a long, engrossing study in astonishment. Indeed, it is impossible not to read many, if not all, of her poems as testaments to the imagination, as when the speaker in “Nice Hands” reflects on being five years old.....more
These generally playful poems seem to be less concerned with Things than with The-Relationships-Between-Things, be these relationships familial, geographical, or purely conceptual. The names-of-things that appear in these poems (e.g., the blue orchids in the poem "Perfume River," or the deer antlers in "The Beautiful is Negative") have little or no importance in themselves; rather, their raison-d'etre is to serve as counters in a conceptual game of relationships, connections, and linkages. Consi...more
Reading through Mary Ruefle’s new Selected Poems, published by Wave Books and culled from her ten books of poetry, I notice two threads run through all the work: one is an element of light-handed humor, and the other is the echo of Biblical language and subject matter. References to artifice and art also reappear throughout her poems, signaling that Ruefle wants the reader to stay aware of context and linguistic maneuvers.
Her language is simple and direct, even when the poem itself is not; one o...more
Her language is simple and direct, even when the poem itself is not; one o...more
I carry this volume everywhere. It's become one of my favorite collections. Mary once wrote me: "Jon, this poem doesn't prepare me for my death." And I had to agree, the poem I sent her didn't do that, didn't even have that as a goal because it wasn't aware that poems could do so. But these poems, Mary's poems, they do that. This is a wonderful selection from a lifetime's fearless dedication to poetry.
This was a gift from my brother for Christmas. I had never read any of Mary Ruefle's work, but I absolutely fell in love with her through this. It's an absolutely gorgeous collection. I'll definitely be checking out her other books!
Infectiously witty, percipient, and rueful poems.
view 1 comment
The world of literature is a better place because of Mary Ruefle. i am obsessed with her writing.
Wonderful poems.
I love her work!
Look at the men and women / unable to understand: / there are two of them walking / alone and in love / coming back from the fields / that have bent them.
Yes yes yes! Mary is the madame of the poetic turn. Her turns and leaps are wild, yet somehow totally integrated.
Thank you Mary and thank you Wave for hours of inspiration. I am going to read this beautiful book again & again
Thank you Mary and thank you Wave for hours of inspiration. I am going to read this beautiful book again & again
1 like · like · see review
Best collection I've read in a while.
I read three thousand books, / and then I died.
Bottom line: Mary Ruefle is our Emily Dickinson.
Bottom line: Mary Ruefle is our Emily Dickinson.
Finished and now I will read all over again.
Helping me prepare for it.
May 14, 2013
Priscilla
marked it as to-read
May 06, 2013
Misty
marked it as to-read
Apr 27, 2013
Abby
marked it as to-read
Apr 20, 2013
Kim
marked it as to-read
Apr 16, 2013
Brian Lynn
marked it as to-read
Apr 13, 2013
Nicholas Firth
marked it as to-read
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Mary Ruefle is an American poet and essayist. The daughter of a military officer, Ruefle was born outside Pittsburgh in 1952, but spent her early life traveling around the U.S. and Europe. She graduated from Bennington College in 1974 with a degree in Literature.
Ruefle's work has been widely published in literary journals. She has received a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, a Whiting Wr...more
More about Mary Ruefle...
Ruefle's work has been widely published in literary journals. She has received a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, a Whiting Wr...more
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
