Stanley Kunitz Books

I had never purchased a book of poetry before but this was recommended to me and I am very glad I bought it. The collection is superb.

Never can I match Shalom Freedman of 1500+ Reviews and 60 in two weeks of July! Completing most of THE WILD BRAID, I browsed thru other Collections of Sir Stanley...He hooked me early in the midst of his neatly arranged Reflections! Since my getting stung by hearing him read, "The Layers" on NPR's Infinite Mind, I felt urged to get to writing my Oft' Postponed Autobio Reflections!

Whenever I meditate early each Morn on his infinitely inspiring poems I start with THE LAYERS from 6th Group of Reflections by the same Name! Goodies under that title: The KNOT; Words For The Unknown Makers: "To A Slave Named Job; "Girl With Sampler; "A Soft Answer Turns Away Wrath; "A Blessing of Women." THese 16pp proceed quite neatly into his Awesome, Consuming, though much Longer: "The Lincoln Relics" and "The Meditations on Death!"

Unless it be too hasty to add: I have named these as Best of his Poems to be found in The LAYERS! This 6th Group of Reflections fall into the dates of 1928-1978

In Summary: Three sections of Longer + Numerous Poems lie within THIS GARLAND, DANGER in SELECTED POEMS of 1928-1958 (4th Group) and THE TESTING-TREE of 1971 (5th Group) When I choose my great Favorites of his shorter Poems: VITA NUOVA; SOTTO VOCE; SUMMER SOLSTICE.. They combine varied length of lines, 2-3 verses, are both rhymed and free-style; SUMMER SOLSTICE is like Prose with a bit of punctuation. SOTTO VOCE has no punctuation, yet simpler and more personally focused!

Regardless from each perspective, anyone looking into Stanley's Poetry, may find he becomes less & less an Enigma! Exactly as stated in THE LAYERS of 1978: "and I am not who I WAS! My caps & my ending conclusion. Mit great Adoration--Retired 75yr old, Chap Fred W Hood

I heartily recommend this book of poems, and I especially recommend it to the reader who never or rarely ever reads poetry. What a treat is in store for you.

This is a great collection of poems. I recommend the book

These 'Collected Poems of Stanley Kunitz' were put together when the poet was ninety- five years old. He now is approaching one - hundred and his birthday will be celebrated this year, also with another collection of his poetry.
There are many reasons for wanting to read such a collection. First of all, it is interesting to see what a person has done in the course of a lifetime of work. As I understand it Kunitz evolved in style from a complex Blakean kind of writing to a more mature and simple style in which personal elements and reflections play a stronger part. Secondly, it is interesting to understand the accumulated ' wisdom' not simply in relation to his own literary craft but also about life and love in general. It is also interesting to see the kind of universes and worlds a person explores in their lifetime, in Kunitz's case these are of course many of the giants of English poetry, but his interests are also in activities like gardening,Jewish mystics, Russian poets of this century, and of course the passions of romantic love.
I think that there is something also here which is especially admirable. Faithfulness to the task, the dedication and the ability to work through many years, is a triumph of the human spirit.
This gives an added dimension to the enjoyment of the poetry.

I grew up in Russia reading Akhmatova, Esenin and other great poets of the "Silver Period". To this day, Akhmatova is the poet I turn to when nostalgia hits. So when I wanted to introduce Russian poetry to my English-speaking husband, I bought this volume.
I am giving this book only four stars because of the somewhat limited selection of the poems: some of her greatest (and best known in Russia) are missing. Kunitz really shines in being able to relay the mood and (surprisingly) the rythm of Akhmatova, even if the actual translatoin is not quite accurate. Overall, this is a great introduction to the poems of a truly talented poet. However, you will soon find yourself shopping for the complete works.

This is a marvelous book. It is extremely difficult to accurately capture the flavor of the original writing in translation, but Kunitz has done this and more - the English itself is poetry. The book is dual language, so readers of Russian can read the original next to the English. Both are excellent.

The selection is fairly representative of Akhmatova's life work, with early poems from 1909, through her affair with the poet Blok in the teens, the Terror and War, to her deathbed in 1961. I particularly enjoyed the translation of the epic "Requiem". Without a doubt, this is the best English version I have ever read. My only complaint is its berevity - at 40 poems, it merely whets the readers appetite for more - a pity, given the outstanding nature of both poet and translator.

For those who are not familiar with Anna Akhmatova, this is a gem. If you have read some of her work, this is a must-have volume. Enjoy!

This is the volume that introduced me to the works of Anna Akhmatova. After having read this in one evening, I could not sleep - I was so moved by her poetry. The translation must have captured her heart and soul because it certainly captured mine - it inspired me to get up in the middle of the night and draw pictures to go with what I had read. I understood at once the love the Russian people have for her. Since then, I have gobbled up everything translated into English that I can find, but I still think this little volume is the best of all and return to it again and again. Enjoy......

I'm not a great poetry lover, but the simplicity and meaning of her poems is even enough to turn me on to poetry!!!! Her words reach my life experiences and touch my soul.

This is such a beautifully written little volume, so sensitive, insightful,and inspirational. Ms. Braham's choice of language to describe these poets and their poetry is exquisite! I would highly recommend it to any who enjoy a terrific read!

When I finished this lovely little book I sat there under my reading light for several minutes filled with the that rare satisfaction that some pieces of art lend you. These four poets are among my favorites but I learned so much about them in so little space and their poems came alive to me in an extraordinary way. I went back to my dusty shelves and resurrected them. The book rides on the shoulders of the poet who wrote it for she provides the quiet, direct intimacy that binds you to all of them. She does for each of them something that no award, and they all have many, could ever do and that is she brings them into your hearts. Moser's art adds additional beauty to it. Buy it, give it to people you care deeply about. Share with them the light.

Antiworlds & The Fifth Ace, in addition to being the most complete collection of Voznesensky's poems available and offering the reader the Russian originals on facing pages, gives us access to this remarkable poet through equally remarkable translations by well-known American poets.
--- from book's back cover

Don't skip the introductions and preface - they present an excellent overview of what artists' are and what they can provide for creative people. The standardized format of the individual entries and the categorized indices make it easy to narrow your choices and decide which communities you want to find more about.

I originally found this book in a library and decided to order my own copy. It's very thorough and gives plenty of useful information on hundreds of authors without bogging you down. If you're majoring in Literature and/or have a lot of papers to write, this is the book for you!

None of Kunitz's contemporaries has lived as long. He finds the intellect and passions inseparable. Dante's influence in Stanely Kunitz's poetry is internal. Almost all his poems are devotional.

Kunitz taught hundreds of students. His students say he taught them to love their places of origin. Kunitz speaks of language changing into meaning. Language reaches the poet in a shapeless rush. Every artist is born into a style.

Kunitz's association with Theodore Roethke began when they were both young men. Kunitz first began to teach in the late forties at Bennington. He edited a periodical while in high school at the Classical High School in Worcester, MA. After college, Harvard, he worked for a newspaper in Worcester and then he worked for a publisher in New York City. He found an office existence intolerable and moved to a farm in Connecticut. Later he moved to Bucks County and then to Provincetown. He finds that New York City depletes him. He is happiest in Provincetown.

He was born in Worcester in 1905 to Russian immigrant parents. His father died just prior to his birth. His mother had a flourishing business based upon her own dress designs. His household had full sets of Dickens and Tolstoy and other writers. He did not return to Worcester until 1963 when Clark University granted him an honorary degree. Donne, Herbert, Blake and Wordsworth were poetic influences. The Wasteland" shook his world.

He believes a poet needs to keep his wilderness alive inside him. Kunitz has been asked how does a poet garden. He writes at night, sometimes until dawn. Gardening is an aspect of his meditative life. Structure has always been enormously important to Kunitz. Kunitz claims he is enchanted with every step in the process of making things grow. Louise Gluck, Kunitz's student, reports he taught habits of thought. A sampling of poems appears in the appendix of the book.

This book is an absolute MUST : the photos do Stanley Kunitz justice : he was a charming old man of nearly 100 years of age; his view on life & poetry are just what one needs at ANY time . It's a jewel of a book!!!
It's difficult to put a "tag" to it, since it's abour gardening AND poetry as ways of life...

This is one of those books I will keep and return to frequently, a small gem produced just before Stanley Kunitz's 100th birthday. It is a lovely combination of photos and text. Quiet, thoughtful, respectful, the book shows the relationship between tending gardens and writing poems. Kunitz has long been one of my favorite poets. Having examples of some of his best poems along with his comments about writing them and writing poetry in general is a treat.

These reflections and poems of Stanley Kunitz express his understanding of the garden as a place that "leads to an appreciation of the natural universe", his delight in each day, and his readiness at 100 years of age to take the next step on his journey.

There are so many aspects of this wonderful book to comment on. The photos of Stanley in his garden celebrate the beauty of his garden and of living life to the fullest in old age. My favorite is a picture of Stanley's gnarled hands behind his back with dirt on the tips of his fingers.

I am new to Kunitz's poetry so the poems sprinkled throughout the book were wonderful to read. More than the poems though, I was fascinated by his thoughts about the process of writing poetry and what constitutes a meaningful poem.

"Almost anything you do in the garden, for example weeding, is an effort to create some sort of order out of nature's tendency to run wild. There has to be a certain degree of domestication in a garden. The danger is that you can so tame your garden that it becomes a THING. It bcomes landscaping.

In a poem, the danger is obvious; there is natural idiom and then there is domesticated language. The difference is apparent immediately when you sense everything has been subjugated, that the poet has tamed the language and the thought process that flows into a poem until it maintains a principle of order but nothing remains to give the poem its tang, its liberty, its force. Once the poem starts flowing, the poet must not try to dictate every syllable."

Thanks to my dear friend who recommended this wonderful book.

Stanley Kunitz's slim volume, written shortly before his death at age 100 last May, is destined to become a treasured volume for writers, gardeners, nature-lovers and anyone who seeks to live fully. The poems and photos woven throughout are as gorgeous as the text, which contains inspirational (I hesitate to use this overused word in relation to such an extraordinary context) and instructional lessons on living to the fullest, even as life winds down like the garden in winter. Kunitz is a quiet hero for embracing life in all its complexity and wildness, and this book is one to return to over and over for pleasure, comfort and discovery.

I, too, just got back from a two-week residency at Norcroft Women Writers Retreat in Minnesota. We passed this book around as well, scribbling addresses in our notebooks. The experience at Norcroft was so special, we wanted more opportunities. This book opened the door for us. Browsing other residencies was a joy. I am planning on buying my own copy.

I bought this book as a resource for ideas on what we might need to do in Waukegan, Illinois to create an artists community here. It seems clear that building around the arts is the most organic way to rebuild our downtown and lakefront area. As such, we are looking for ways to create new gallery and studio space, foster live/work space creation and even establish the City as a destination for artist colonies and retreats. Obviously, we don't need to reinvent the wheel. The best way to learn some of the things we could do is to study what other communities have done. This book has served that end very well. I plan to visit some of the communities and residences outlined in this book to learn even more of what could be duplicated here in Waukegan. Make no mistake, the book is not intended to be a "how to" book for creating an artists community, but by describing what various communities offer it serves that purpose aptly.

This edition has been revised and updated to include nearly eighty residences in the U.S., including complete descriptions on each community from residency lengths and admission deadlines and fees to programs offered. Histories of the programs complete the overviews which will prove important for any considering an art community residency.

Diane C. Donovan Reviewer

I'm just back from Johnson VT, The Vermont Studio Center, where artist residents were eagerly passing this book from table to table at meals. It appears to be a great time-saving source as applying for grants and residencies can be a full time job. VSC was accurately described so I'm hopeful that the other listings prove to be well researched. I'm listing 4 stars as I've just added this book to my shopping list, it may very well be a 5 star reference guide for artists.

The poetry of Stanley Kunitz can be heart-wrenching. I like some of the poems in The Testing-Tree (1971) even though he wears his heart on his sleeve. Such easy sentiment should not move me, but somehow it does. "Journal for My Daughter" is so sappy unless you have actually raised a daughter whom you love. "Heart" seems to be his favorite word. It is in every poem in fact or in spirit.

Other books by Kunitz are occasionally available, but there are some poems - like "The Science of the Night" - that there is no other way to get. Kunitz has a luminous voice and writes some very good poetry. If you ever see this in a second-hand bookshop, you should snap it up.