The Pushcart Book of Poetry

by Joan Murray., The Pushcart Prize Poetry Editors (Editor)

As selected from the first twenty-five years of The Pushcart Prize , the best poetry in recent American literature.

What a wealth of brilliance has appeared in over a quarter-century of The Pushcart Prize , and much of that brilliance has been evident in the poetry.

From the start of the series in 1976, the editors of The Pushcart Prize have celebrated all sorts of poetry, from the traditional to the experimental, by both known and unknown poets. More than 750 poems have appeared, selected by new poetry editors for most of the twenty-five editions.

Under the general editorship of Joan Murray, herself a distinguished poet, all of the past poetry editors were asked to select their favorite poems; the result is a poetry anthology like no other. The list of editors alone reads like a Who's Who of American Billy Collins, Grace Schulman, Carolyn Forche, Gerald Stern, Stanley Plumly, Philip Levine, Jorie Graham, Robert Hass, Philip Booth, William Heyen, Elizabeth Spires, Marvine Bell, Carolyn Kizer, Lynn Emanuel, David St. John, Hether McHugh, and many others.

Genres: Poetry

634 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2006

About the author

Joan Murray (August 6, 1945 -) is an American poet, writer, playwright and editor.

She is best known for her narrative poems, particularly her book-length novel-in-verse, Queen of the Mist; her collection Looking for the Parade which won the National Poetry Series Open Competition.

Murray has served as a panelist for The National Endowment for the Arts, The New York State Council on the Arts, and The New York Foundation for the Arts.

Reviews

[Amara]

As someone who wanted to read more poetry, this is a lovely collection with many poems making me “feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off”. The only critique I have is in the organization; the book is divided into parts, and I wish there was more explicit explanation on how these divisions came to be. Or perhaps it should be split up more logically and clearly into topics and subjects of the poems. Besides that, I wish I could have my own copy rather than having to return this to the library :(

[Carolyn]

I love to check out poetry anthologies from the library and copy my favorite poems into my little leather-bound notebook. This system will not work with this book though as I'm marking almost every other poem in the thick book. I'm going to buy this book for myself so I can wake up Sunday mornings and slowly roll one of the poems around in my mouth, absorbing them with my dose of caffeine in my still-warm bed.

[David Anthony Sam]

A very good collection of poetry from the last 30 years, all selected from winners of the Pushcart Prize. Some excellent poetry, much very good, and some that left me cold.

The best poet in the volume whom I was not already familiar with has to be Li-Young Lee, whose poem "Furious Versions" stunned me.

[Leisha Wharfield]

My wonderful husband got me this for our anniversary this year. It will take me a long time to read it, and I'm enjoying every minute.

[D.]

Obviously I did not love every poem in this collection but this book was wonderful for experiencing a range of poets I probably wouldn't have encountered before. Definitely something I want to own later.

[Nadine]

A good way to get acquainted with all the major poets of the last 30 years. 600 pages of excellent poetry.

[Cindy]

I haven't read poetry in a very long time. It was enjoyable to peruse and pick the poems that I immediately liked.

[Robert]

A substantial collection of poetry from prize winning poets covering a 30 year span prior to its 2009 publication date. Diverse styles and subjects made this interesting reading.