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100 Selected Poems, Emily Dickinson
One of the most striking American lyric poet, Emily Dickinson came to be known only after she passed away. This collectable edition brings together her finest poems including Heart! We will forget him! (47), Success is counted sweetest (67), Hope is the thing with feathers (254), Im Nobody! Who are you? (288), The Soul selects her own Society (303), I measure every Grief I meet (561), Because I could not stop for Death (712), My Life had stood a Loaded Gun (754), and Rearrange a Wifes affection! (1737). Dickinson did not give titles to her poems. They are known either by the first line of the poem or the numbers allotted to them in the Thomas H. Johnsons edition, The Poems of Emily Dickinson. We have used the numbers to identify the poems. A specimen of her exquisite craftsmanship, each poem gives an insight into Dickinsons life and the emotions she experienced.
224 pages, Hardcover
Published December 1, 2019
73 people are currently reading
247 people want to read
About the author
Emily Dickinson
1,555 books6,888 followersEmily Dickinson was an American poet who, despite the fact that less than a dozen of her nearly eighteen hundred poems were published during her lifetime, is widely considered one of the most original and influential poets of the 19th century.
Dickinson was born to a successful family with strong community ties, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life. After she studied at the Amherst Academy for seven years in her youth, she spent a short time at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary before returning to her family's house in Amherst. Thought of as an eccentric by the locals, she became known for her penchant for white clothing and her reluctance to greet guests or, later in life, even leave her room. Most of her friendships were therefore carried out by correspondence.
Although Dickinson was a prolific private poet, fewer than a dozen of her nearly eighteen hundred poems were published during her lifetime.The work that was published during her lifetime was usually altered significantly by the publishers to fit the conventional poetic rules of the time. Dickinson's poems are unique for the era in which she wrote; they contain short lines, typically lack titles, and often use slant rhyme as well as unconventional capitalization and punctuation.Many of her poems deal with themes of death and immortality, two recurring topics in letters to her friends.
Although most of her acquaintances were probably aware of Dickinson's writing, it was not until after her death in 1886—when Lavinia, Emily's younger sister, discovered her cache of poems—that the breadth of Dickinson's work became apparent. Her first collection of poetry was published in 1890 by personal acquaintances Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Mabel Loomis Todd, both of whom heavily edited the content.
A complete and mostly unaltered collection of her poetry became available for the first time in 1955 when The Poems of Emily Dickinson was published by scholar Thomas H. Johnson. Despite unfavorable reviews and skepticism of her literary prowess during the late 19th and early 20th century, critics now consider Dickinson to be a major American poet.
For more information, please see http://www.answers.com/topic/emily-di...
Dickinson was born to a successful family with strong community ties, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life. After she studied at the Amherst Academy for seven years in her youth, she spent a short time at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary before returning to her family's house in Amherst. Thought of as an eccentric by the locals, she became known for her penchant for white clothing and her reluctance to greet guests or, later in life, even leave her room. Most of her friendships were therefore carried out by correspondence.
Although Dickinson was a prolific private poet, fewer than a dozen of her nearly eighteen hundred poems were published during her lifetime.The work that was published during her lifetime was usually altered significantly by the publishers to fit the conventional poetic rules of the time. Dickinson's poems are unique for the era in which she wrote; they contain short lines, typically lack titles, and often use slant rhyme as well as unconventional capitalization and punctuation.Many of her poems deal with themes of death and immortality, two recurring topics in letters to her friends.
Although most of her acquaintances were probably aware of Dickinson's writing, it was not until after her death in 1886—when Lavinia, Emily's younger sister, discovered her cache of poems—that the breadth of Dickinson's work became apparent. Her first collection of poetry was published in 1890 by personal acquaintances Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Mabel Loomis Todd, both of whom heavily edited the content.
A complete and mostly unaltered collection of her poetry became available for the first time in 1955 when The Poems of Emily Dickinson was published by scholar Thomas H. Johnson. Despite unfavorable reviews and skepticism of her literary prowess during the late 19th and early 20th century, critics now consider Dickinson to be a major American poet.
For more information, please see http://www.answers.com/topic/emily-di...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
September 4, 2021
It's Emily Dickinson. She knows about everything.
December 8, 2020
What a beautiful collection of poems. I was so anxious about where to begin reading poetry and a little scared even of not being able to understand it, but these poems pierced right through my heart. ‘I measure every grief I meet’, ‘It ceased to hurt me, though so slow’ really spoke to me. It sounds almost cheap to say I could ‘relate’, but well I very much did. Connected might be a good word, understood even better.
I’ve noted down a few lines from different poems that struck me:
That love is all there is,
is all we know of love ...
•
Life is but Life And Death, but Death!
•
I lost a world - the other day!
Has Anybody found?
•
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain
•
How dreary - to be - Somebody!
•
The Soul selects her own society -
Then - shuts the Door
•
This is my letter to the World
That never wrote to Me -
•
Tell the truth but tell it slant
I’ve noted down a few lines from different poems that struck me:
That love is all there is,
is all we know of love ...
•
Life is but Life And Death, but Death!
•
I lost a world - the other day!
Has Anybody found?
•
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain
•
How dreary - to be - Somebody!
•
The Soul selects her own society -
Then - shuts the Door
•
This is my letter to the World
That never wrote to Me -
•
Tell the truth but tell it slant
October 22, 2020
I received this book as a birthday gift in August and started reading immediately. I wouldn't say anything about Emily Dickinson's poetry (I am not worthy!). I've always adored her.
More than anything, I loved the process of it all - reading a poem (or two) everyday; ruminating over them; making annotations; reading analysis by other people on the internet; sending pictures of the passages I liked to friends who would care to read them.
I hope to continue reading poetry everyday like this for the rest of my life. 🙂
More than anything, I loved the process of it all - reading a poem (or two) everyday; ruminating over them; making annotations; reading analysis by other people on the internet; sending pictures of the passages I liked to friends who would care to read them.
I hope to continue reading poetry everyday like this for the rest of my life. 🙂
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July 4, 2021I will exclusively refer to death as the bridegroom waiting for me at the end of the aisle going forward.
October 10, 2022
I always admire Emily Dickinson’s work. There’s something soothing and comforting about her poetry which is felt through most of her poems.
This one is a good collection of 100 poems by her and makes a good read :)
This one is a good collection of 100 poems by her and makes a good read :)
May 21, 2021
My heart broke, I laughed, I cried and I died
December 12, 2022
A beautiful collection of poems. Deep and requires analysis.
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February 17, 2023miss dickinson i know what u are 🤨
August 13, 2023
First of all, I believe that it's impossible to rate poetry collections because just like songs poem's meanings change as you change as well. With that being said this book itself is very beautiful and I have bought different collections of poems. Coming to the collection, Ms. Dickinson is royalty and I am not well versed in poetry to pass judgment here but the poems didn't hit me all the way maybe because maybe I flew through them because it's an easy read because the poems themselves are shortish from 3 lines to maybe about 4 pages long and I loved the format and like other's, I could've read it in one sitting but decided to take it slowly but my huge current reading list is forcing me to go through books in order to reduce the number but I am planning on keeping all the poetry books to go through them again in some time and see how the experience changes with time. Till then I shall keep on reading.
People who don't read generally ask me my reasons for reading. Simply put, I absolutely love reading, so I have made it my motto to Forever Keep on Reading. I love reading everything except for Self Help books, even occasionally. I read almost all the genres but YA, Fantasy, and Biographies are the most read. My favorite series is Harry Potter, but then there are many more books I adore. I have bookcases filled with books that are waiting to be read so I can't stay and spend more time on this review, so remember I loved reading this and love reading more, you should also read what you love and then just Keep on Reading.
People who don't read generally ask me my reasons for reading. Simply put, I absolutely love reading, so I have made it my motto to Forever Keep on Reading. I love reading everything except for Self Help books, even occasionally. I read almost all the genres but YA, Fantasy, and Biographies are the most read. My favorite series is Harry Potter, but then there are many more books I adore. I have bookcases filled with books that are waiting to be read so I can't stay and spend more time on this review, so remember I loved reading this and love reading more, you should also read what you love and then just Keep on Reading.
January 5, 2021
The past month I've found myself in a bit of a reading slump. But I've really been enjoying loads of poetry and splurged (totally guilty!) on some collectable editions of my favourite poets during the sale season. (yes, they're all available for free online, I know, I know! But I couldn't resist *hides away in shame*)
Emily Dickinson is one my favourite poets. She writes about everything that most touches the human heart- love, legacy, time, age, beauty, death, god and grief.
While her poems are generally somber, her setting and her style of writing are so beautiful that it leaves the reader with great warmth and a happy feeling, despite the theme.
One of the genius of Dickinson is that there are so many possible interpretations of her poems. You can start reading with an expectation of experiencing one theme, but you'll notice she mixes multiple ideas that often leaves us with more questions and blanks to fill with our own interpretation.
I understand some people find her poems a little frustrating to read because of how broken and compressed they sometimes are, and how much she leaves unsaid, but I think that's the beauty of it. The more you read her work the more you'll love her for what she makes you feel/think/interpret rather than what she explicitly talks about. I know some people find her work too simple, her language too "easy", but again I feel like that speaks more of her genius - someone who can write simply about the most difficult things in life is to be admired, is she not?
Her strange world of words is honestly my happy place, and I visit it often.
Emily Dickinson is one my favourite poets. She writes about everything that most touches the human heart- love, legacy, time, age, beauty, death, god and grief.
While her poems are generally somber, her setting and her style of writing are so beautiful that it leaves the reader with great warmth and a happy feeling, despite the theme.
One of the genius of Dickinson is that there are so many possible interpretations of her poems. You can start reading with an expectation of experiencing one theme, but you'll notice she mixes multiple ideas that often leaves us with more questions and blanks to fill with our own interpretation.
I understand some people find her poems a little frustrating to read because of how broken and compressed they sometimes are, and how much she leaves unsaid, but I think that's the beauty of it. The more you read her work the more you'll love her for what she makes you feel/think/interpret rather than what she explicitly talks about. I know some people find her work too simple, her language too "easy", but again I feel like that speaks more of her genius - someone who can write simply about the most difficult things in life is to be admired, is she not?
Her strange world of words is honestly my happy place, and I visit it often.
May 30, 2020
First of all, this was a really light reading, could've finished in just one sitting, although I chose not to, so I could enjoy the contents longer!
And secondly, even though Emily's writings are pretty good, they seem to lack the grave-ness that all the best poets are consumed with, reading her seems like just glancing through a children's book!
But overall, her ideas and thoughts on love are quite amazing, especially when she doesn't try to hide behind the words, so in the end I was satisfied!
And secondly, even though Emily's writings are pretty good, they seem to lack the grave-ness that all the best poets are consumed with, reading her seems like just glancing through a children's book!
But overall, her ideas and thoughts on love are quite amazing, especially when she doesn't try to hide behind the words, so in the end I was satisfied!
December 30, 2025
Loved this as an introduction to Emily Dickinson poems, will buy the whole collection one day, she has inspired me for my own work and to see poetry in a different lens. Out of the grammatical constraints of textbooks, feels better without those chain, that it’s okay to break the rules.
The grammar rules always used to scare me and i kept away, thinking i don’t know enough but slowly broke that and now bolstered by Emily’s work here’s to more poetry i come.
My first poetry collection i have ever read willing and happily. Thank you to ‘Dickinson’ the series for introducing me to this legend.
Those dashes and capitalisation of certain letters are quite impactful. Even in short poems there’s impact. Few of my favs are: Hope is a thing with feathers, I cannot live with You. ♥️
The grammar rules always used to scare me and i kept away, thinking i don’t know enough but slowly broke that and now bolstered by Emily’s work here’s to more poetry i come.
My first poetry collection i have ever read willing and happily. Thank you to ‘Dickinson’ the series for introducing me to this legend.
Those dashes and capitalisation of certain letters are quite impactful. Even in short poems there’s impact. Few of my favs are: Hope is a thing with feathers, I cannot live with You. ♥️
March 24, 2025
I don't think it's a thoughtful selection, for ED has written thousands of poems. I read this book because ED is considered a seminal influence on American poetry. I think her poems are more in the British style. ED was obsessed with death and everything related to it. She fancied dying and how she would be at peace then, sleeping inside her 'granite' grave. A few motifs, including wind, mountains, church, nature, sleep, loneliness, and death, appear in most of her poems. Her quiet pain and solitude are evident in her pieces. Some of her short poems are nice. To be candid, I just wanted this book to end. Although there are a few gems, I didn't find her poetry impressive.
February 23, 2022
Matt Haig was right when he said Emily Dickinson knew everything.
After having read my 4th book of poetry in 3 months, I feel like I'm finally home after being lost my whole life. I wrote a poem when I was in first grade and ever since I had begun to hate poetry for it was a pain to decipher. But now, I can't stop myself from writing poetry and reading poetry and breathing poetry. From dreaming poetry, feeling poetry.
And it's all because of a certain someone. And I bow my head in gratitude.
After having read my 4th book of poetry in 3 months, I feel like I'm finally home after being lost my whole life. I wrote a poem when I was in first grade and ever since I had begun to hate poetry for it was a pain to decipher. But now, I can't stop myself from writing poetry and reading poetry and breathing poetry. From dreaming poetry, feeling poetry.
And it's all because of a certain someone. And I bow my head in gratitude.
September 3, 2021
I honestly don't know what to write, please its freaking Emily Dickinson! The name itself is enough.
It's a lovely collection of poetry, poetries that are beautiful, aesthete, poetry that has heartbreak, pain and death and then poetry of daily life struggles and epiphanies.
I loved each and every poem, some more than the others but damnit if I wouldn't keep revisiting the book every now and then.
For those who haven't read this yet my question to ya'll is WHY??
It's a lovely collection of poetry, poetries that are beautiful, aesthete, poetry that has heartbreak, pain and death and then poetry of daily life struggles and epiphanies.
I loved each and every poem, some more than the others but damnit if I wouldn't keep revisiting the book every now and then.
For those who haven't read this yet my question to ya'll is WHY??
March 2, 2022
Emily Dickinson’s life was mostly confined to her bedroom, her books, and her garden. The themes of her poetry, however, are anything but limited. She talks of Death as if it were a romantic companion. Nothing can triumph the might of her verse: “Because I could not stop for death, He kindly stopped for me…”.
January 7, 2023
A magical collection of all things bright and beautiful. I thought I would read one poem a day but I couldn’t keep the book down. Several poems, I reread and will keep reading over and over again. This is something that I had earlier done with William Wordsworth’s poetry - read, reread, recite to myself at the dark of night and the crack of dawn.
Emily is my new found love where I find solace.
Emily is my new found love where I find solace.
November 13, 2024
Did this improve how I feel about poems? No.
Did I connect with all the poems in this connections? No.
Can I call myself a poetry person? No.
Was this experiment a complete failure? No.
Emily Dickinson is an icon and I am only grateful to be have a glimpse into the inner workings of her mind.
3.5 :)
Did I connect with all the poems in this connections? No.
Can I call myself a poetry person? No.
Was this experiment a complete failure? No.
Emily Dickinson is an icon and I am only grateful to be have a glimpse into the inner workings of her mind.
3.5 :)
June 7, 2021
An enchanting collection poems....
Really unique set of meaning carried by each word and sentence. One can read these poems back and forth non-stop.
Highly recommend these to anyone who wants to read classic poetry🌺
Really unique set of meaning carried by each word and sentence. One can read these poems back and forth non-stop.
Highly recommend these to anyone who wants to read classic poetry🌺
August 16, 2022
I will say that poems are not my strongest suit as it takes me a while to interpret them. Emily Dickinson was not different but there were a couple of them to which I responded to greatly. It's crazy that she never got to see her stuff published and she truly is an amazing poet.
September 9, 2022
I wish it also had the Poem, I dwell in Possibility. But this collection has some of Emily's best poems.
It has some of her best like 'I'm Nobody', 'Because I could not stop for Death', 'The Soul selects her own Society' and 'I lost a world the Other Day'.
It has some of her best like 'I'm Nobody', 'Because I could not stop for Death', 'The Soul selects her own Society' and 'I lost a world the Other Day'.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 19, 2023
I picked this up at a book festival for fun the other day because I've always wanted to try reading Emily Dickinson's poetry, and needless to say I really enjoyed reading it. I adore this book and now am a proud Emily Dickinson lover!
April 24, 2023
4.5 stars
I just feel a special connection to Emily Dickinson. I'm going to quote her back at herself; "If it makes me feel so cold that no fire could ever warm me, then I know it is poetry."
This is poetry.
I just feel a special connection to Emily Dickinson. I'm going to quote her back at herself; "If it makes me feel so cold that no fire could ever warm me, then I know it is poetry."
This is poetry.
August 14, 2025
I love Emily’s works, but this was a terrible collection. Not just it misses out many beautiful works in a 'curated collection', it has no contextual keys, or commentaries, and some poems even have missing stanzas. Lousy collection.
August 6, 2021
"Futile - the Winds -
To a Heart in port -
Done with the Compass -
Done with the chart!"
To a Heart in port -
Done with the Compass -
Done with the chart!"
December 24, 2021
SHE KNOWS HER STUFF!!!!!
also, i don’t think you’re ever done reading a poetry book! you’re cursed (in a good way) to keep revisiting and enjoying it!
also, i don’t think you’re ever done reading a poetry book! you’re cursed (in a good way) to keep revisiting and enjoying it!
February 1, 2022
It was difficult to understand but it had peaceful vibe
Amazing poem with deep meaning
Amazing poem with deep meaning
March 13, 2022
i dont think any explanation is needed
July 11, 2022
Son poemas muy delicados e íntimos. Están bien.
August 18, 2022
congrats to emily dickinson on being the first lesbian
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews