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The Other Side of the River
Twenty poems look at the past, dreams, art, nature, other lands, time, and the lie beyond everyday life
- GenresPoetry
73 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1984
About the author
Charles Wright
234 books114 followersCharles Wright is an American poet. He shared the National Book Award in 1983 for Country Music: Selected Early Poems and won the Pulitzer Prize in 1998 for Black Zodiac.
From 2014 to 2015, he served as the 20th Poet Laureate of the United States. Charles Wright is often ranked as one of the best American poets of his generation. He attended Davidson College and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop; he also served four years in the U.S. Army, and it was while stationed in Italy that Wright began to read and write poetry. He is the author of over 20 books of poetry.
Charles Wright is a Chancellor of The Academy of American Poets and the Souder Family Professor of English at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. His many collections of poetry and numerous awards—including the Pulitzer Prize, the Griffin International Poetry Prize, and a Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize—have proven that he is, as Jay Parini once said, “among the best poets” of his generation. Yet Wright remains stoic about such achievements: it is not the poet, but the poems, as he concluded to Genoways. “One wants one’s work to be paid attention to, but I hate personal attention. I just want everyone to read the poems. I want my poetry to get all the attention in the world, but I want to be the anonymous author.”
From 2014 to 2015, he served as the 20th Poet Laureate of the United States. Charles Wright is often ranked as one of the best American poets of his generation. He attended Davidson College and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop; he also served four years in the U.S. Army, and it was while stationed in Italy that Wright began to read and write poetry. He is the author of over 20 books of poetry.
Charles Wright is a Chancellor of The Academy of American Poets and the Souder Family Professor of English at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. His many collections of poetry and numerous awards—including the Pulitzer Prize, the Griffin International Poetry Prize, and a Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize—have proven that he is, as Jay Parini once said, “among the best poets” of his generation. Yet Wright remains stoic about such achievements: it is not the poet, but the poems, as he concluded to Genoways. “One wants one’s work to be paid attention to, but I hate personal attention. I just want everyone to read the poems. I want my poetry to get all the attention in the world, but I want to be the anonymous author.”
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
November 23, 2010
At first I loved this book; I felt like I was in great hands with a poet who made choosing just the right line look accidental (a free-verse conceit that I continue to fall for, despite knowing better). This may be because the opening poem is really great. It also may be because I'd been reading mostly his later work and feeling that I wanted to read something that wasn't just a response to having read some book of Eastern Philosophy.
Alas, it got boring fast. How many nature poems can one person write? The trees, the birds, okay already! It feels so lazy, like the poet didn't want to bother with actual events in his life and preferred to spend it corrupting the self-actuality of nature for his own metaphorical ends. It feels so removed from life - the poet afraid to say what he really thinks about people.
Nonetheless, I walk away with the sense that this is a great writer. I'm still looking for the perfect Charles Wright book. Suggestions welcome.
Alas, it got boring fast. How many nature poems can one person write? The trees, the birds, okay already! It feels so lazy, like the poet didn't want to bother with actual events in his life and preferred to spend it corrupting the self-actuality of nature for his own metaphorical ends. It feels so removed from life - the poet afraid to say what he really thinks about people.
Nonetheless, I walk away with the sense that this is a great writer. I'm still looking for the perfect Charles Wright book. Suggestions welcome.
April 27, 2013
You can definitely see how Wright's unique style evolved as you read through his work chronologically. He's a joy to read as always. Highly recommended.
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July 28, 2017811.54 W9483o 1984
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May 7, 2019"You've got to sign your name to something, it seems to me."
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews