E.E. Cummings: Voices in Poetry

by S.L. Berry, E.E. Cummings, Stasys Eidrigevičius (Illustrator)

Combining biographical profiles with poetry selections, this revised and updated selection of Voices in Poetry highlights the extraordinary lives and talent of some of the world's most influential poets. From Shakespeare's classic love sonnets to Hughes's songs of the African American experience, this series introduces readers to six unique poetic voices from multiple perspectives by featuring full-length poems or excerpts from larger works and examinations of the author's style and thematic material. This title provides an exploration of the life and work of 20th-century American writer E. E. Cummings, whose poetry is known for its combination of innovative, artistic style and traditional rhyme and meter.

Genres: Biography, Poetry, Nonfiction

48 pages, Hardcover

First published January 27, 2015

Reviews

[Gail Sacharski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another poet, in the series, I knew by reputation but was unfamiliar with his life and works. It definitely helps to have the biographical information as one reads the accompanying poetry so there is a better understanding of the poem's inspiration & meaning. Cummings was an experimenter, not content with producing a conformist piece of writing (or art), but creating a piece that was visually to his liking. He used spacing & ran words together, used parentheses, grammar, & punctuation in his own design to control the pace & appearance of his work. The poem written in memory of his father is a beautiful piece. He was both praised & criticized for his style, but cared little for opinions; the importance & satisfaction was in the creating to produce a piece that met his own standards. The book has photos, many fascinating facts about his life & work, & some very eerie & bizarre illustrations which appear to be photos of a person holding various art-created masks before its face. As strange as they are, they seem to fit with Cummings' unique poetry & complement the pieces. I liked it.

[Mansour · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you believe in always,the wind
said to the rain
I am too busy with
my flowers to believe,the rain answered

you said Is
there anything which
is dead or alive more beautiful
than my body,to have in your fingers
(trembling ever so little)?
Looking into
your eyes Nothing,i said,except the
air of spring smelling of never and forever.

[Misty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't really think this series have the best selections for these poets but it's ok.

[Miz Lizzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Published the same year (2015) as Enormous Smallness, this biography of E. E. Cummings is for a somewhat older child/teen reader than the picture book biography. Not surprisingly, it includes some of the darker bits and more difficult poems. Though there are some photos and one of E. E. Cummings' drawings (the picture book had not indicated that he was an artist as well as a poet), it is oddly illustrated with some large bizarre artwork by Stasys Eidrigevicius, fitting for Cummings' poetry perhaps but rather disconcerting for a biography. It's also curious that both of Cummings' first two wives are pictured but Marion Morehouse, his third (common-law) wife and love of his life is not pictured at all. The description of the death of his parents appears to be somewhat inaccurate (saying his father was driving the car) and indeed no sources, acknowledgments, or bibliography included. It does, however, include what I think is my favorite picture of Cummings on p. 44 with an impish Dalai Lama-ish grin upon his face.

Book Pairings:
The stoutly staying-on-the-sunny-side picture book biography, Enormous Smallness by Matthew Burgess may not paint as balanced a picture but it gives more sources and is more inspiring.

[Amylu · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can see his painting in his poetry - in these covers learn where modern poetry took a big gulp of influence, typography, play.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love learning about the life of poets and reading their poetry. It was nice to have both in an easy to read book.