Best-Loved Yeats

by W.B. Yeats, Mairead Ashe Fitzgerald (Editor)

I have spread my dreams under your feet;

Tread softly because you tread on my dreams …

Some of the most famous lines in Irish poetry come from the pen of William Butler Yeats, poet, patriot, dramatist and senator. This illustrated collection of forty of his best-loved works, on Love, Politics, Old Age, Myth and Legend includes people, places and events that were important to him.

Genres: Poetry, Classics, Fiction

96 pages, Hardcover

First published March 26, 2010

About the author

William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and dramatist, and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. A pillar of both the Irish and British literary establishments, in his later years Yeats served as an Irish Senator for two terms. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival, and along with Lady Gregory and Edward Martyn founded the Abbey Theatre, serving as its chief during its early years. In 1923 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for what the Nobel Committee described as "inspired poetry, which in a highly artistic form gives expression to the spirit of a whole nation." He was the first Irishman so honored. Yeats is generally considered one of the few writers who completed their greatest works after being awarded the Nobel Prize; such works include The Tower (1928) and The Winding Stair and Other Poems (1929).

Yeats was born and educated in Dublin but spent his childhood in County Sligo. He studied poetry in his youth, and from an early age was fascinated by both Irish legends and the occult. Those topics feature in the first phase of his work, which lasted roughly until the turn of the century. His earliest volume of verse was published in 1889, and those slow paced and lyrical poems display debts to Edmund Spenser and Percy Bysshe Shelley, as well as to the Pre-Raphaelite poets. From 1900, Yeats' poetry grew more physical and realistic. He largely renounced the transcendental beliefs of his youth, though he remained preoccupied with physical and spiritual masks, as well as with cyclical theories of life.
--from Wikipedia

Reviews

[Lili VI · Rating 3 out of 5]

Je suis fascinée par l'Irlande et Yeats en parle très bien. Mais lire de la poésie en anglais est encore un peu difficile !

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

yeats induced crash out incoming

[Maja · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yeats has written some of my favourite poems, and this is such a lovely little volume which presents some of his work, complete with illustrations, a biography and little annotations to give some context where needed.
An old favourite included here:
"Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths,

Enwrought with golden and silver light,

The blue and the dim and the dark cloths

Of night and light and the half light,

I would spread the cloths under your feet:

But I, being poor, have only my dreams;

I have spread my dreams under your feet;

Tread softly because you tread on my dreams."

And a new favourite discovered through this book:

"When you are old and grey and full of sleep,

And nodding by the fire, take down this book,

And slowly read, and dream of the soft look

Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;


How many loved your moments of glad grace,

And loved your beauty with love false or true,

But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,

And loved the sorrows of your changing face;


And bending down beside the glowing bars,

Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled

And paced upon the mountains overhead

And hid his face amid a crowd of stars."

[Rory Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Favourites of Yeats:

The Land of Hearts Desire
The Lake Isle of Innisfree
The White Birds
No Second Troy
O Do Not Love Too Long
To a Shade
Easter 1916
Under Ben Bulben

[Holliday · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much did I rage when young,
Being by the world oppressed,
But now with flattering tongue
It speeds the parting guest.

[Ryan Murtha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm sure this is great, but I really need someone to like hold my hand to understand poetry.

[amita the cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

stellar collection of poetry ✨️ i loved reading it through the irish countryside

[Katrina Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a grand introduction to Yeats. It has his famous poems that are read in high school literature courses (“An Irish Airman Foresees His Death”) and some of his lesser-known works (“Memory”). The collection separates Yeats’ work into five periods, which correspond with seasons of the poet’s life. Background for each section is given in the introduction. Also, after selected poems an explanation into some of the phrases used are stated. For example, after “Easter 1916” the people (Pearse, MacBride, MacDonagh, etc.) that Yeats wrote about in poetic language are clarified. This makes the work all the more enjoyable. The editors of the book draw the reader into the poetry by giving a design template that correlates with the work found in the section. In the section of Yeats’ work in his old age the ghost of Plato (“What Then?”), Grecian urns (“Sailing to Byzantium”), and a winding staircase (signifying the original published volume of poetry) are shown. This is an interesting interaction between text and writing, and it works well with one another. The flaw in this book is that the descriptions of the pictures of Ireland (although pretty) shown are sometimes obscure. It is not clear what is being shown and what the significance is to the poetry.

[Anete Beinarovica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not very big on poetry, but every time I visit Ireland I try to buy at least one book by and Irish author and this year I chose Yeats due to his profound role within the Irish culture and history. This book is a great introduction to the various facets of his work from heartbreaking poems on unrequited love to Celtic legends and the Irish War of Independence. I really enjoyed the explanatory notes next to the poems and the background information on his life. His love for his country seeps through every verse and every line, moving both Irish and foreign readers. Will definitely explore more of Yeats.

[Richard Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

“W B Yeats revered the book as an object as much as a vehicle of information,” Best-Loved Yeats by Mairead Ashe Fitzgerald tells me. (“Vehicle of information” sounds very dull, I’d have thought that Yeats might have rather have thought a book of poetry as a “fountain of inspiration and solace.”) I’ve never been concerned with books as objects, but there are beautiful books—and this is one. I knew most of the poems, but I liked the brief notes in red that complimented the poems. I liked as well the mystical pictures that broke up the sections and the photos.

[Pamela Hernández · Rating 4 out of 5]

Encontré a Yeats en un viaje por Irlanda, por lo que tengo que admitir que no soy imparcial con él. Si llegase a amar, espero hacerlo como él.

En este poemario se recopila y ordena una parte de su trabajo por temas, con ilustraciones y algunas notas que ayudan a contextualizar el tiempo real y en la vida de Yeats. Hay 5 partes que corresponden al nivel de madurez del autor lo que ayuda a entender no solo la genialidad de Yeats sino la pasión y entrega que tenía por escribir.

Es un trabajo increíblemente bello y el libro es bastante bonito también.

[Sylvie T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book on my recent trip to Ireland. I enjoyed a lot of the poems, especially Down by the Salley Gardens. I liked it because I sang the song version in my choir. It's the perfect size, not too many poems and not too few, so you can get a sense of what his writing is like without being overwhelmed.

[Lotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly accessible collections of poems by Yeats, with a nice and short introduction and a little background on some of these.

Got this collection in Dublin, where I also went to see an exhibition on Yeats in the National Gallery, which was lovely.

[Caroline Saulls · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful volume of accessible, bite-sized poetry with just the right amount of commentary. I know very little about Yeats, so I can’t comment on how well the collection represents his work, but the poems and excerpts included are absolutely enchanting!

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can definitely pick up on his love of Ireland, the way he writes about Blythe land and it’s people. My favorites were The Rose Tree, What Then, The Wheel, Youth and Age.

[Sophie Mann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'M IN LOVE.

"Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half-light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams."

[Cambrya B · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book I’ve read with poetry. I loved it! The way Yeats writes is so beautiful and sad at the same time. His mind is such a calm kind of place, and I really just love it. His choice of words is simply perfect, Yeats is the reason I ever got into poetry :).

[Siobhán Mc Laughlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely collection of Yeats' most popular poems, accompanied by beautiful illustrations. A great beginner's guide to Yeats.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lovely selection and collection of Yeats's poems. Beautifully presented with stunning art work.