Friday, October 28, 2011

Poems for People Who Are Not Into Poetry

A few years ago I was thinking of offering to do a poetry reading at Barnes and Noble called "An Hour of Poetry for People Who Are Not Into It." I like poetry, and since I also write a little verse myself now and then, it seems like it would be nice if more people would like poetry. My aim at the B&N event would be to share poems that connect, in the hopes of introducing people to some fun, thought provoking material which they are not familiar with because it is labelled Poetry.

Like modern art, a lot of poetry is just gobbledy-gook for many folk who only end up scratching their heads. "Why is this a good poem?" some could ask. "What was that all about?" Like opera, some people hear the word and steer clear.

Anyways, I made a list of selections for that hour of entertainment and placed it in a folder on my desktop. I shared it about four years ago and it seemed worth sharing again. If I had more time I would put the links here, but alas... I am on deadline. (I have to get dressed for work.) Check them out. I'm sure they will reward you.

Billy Collins
(selections from Sailing Alone Around the Room)
Aristotle
Another Reason I Don't Keep a Gun in the House
Some Days

Hilaire Belloc
Matilda Who Told Lies and Was Burned

Rilke
(from The Selected Poetry of Rainer Maria Rilke)
The Panther
Autumn Day
Sonnets to Orpheus 1.3 and II. 13

Dorothy Parker
Bric-A-Brac

Robert Browning
How They Brought the Good News from Ghent to Aix

Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Blackberries

Robert Frost
Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Eve

Ed Newman
Wisconsin Misty Morning
Bad Break
Hitchhiking Across Antarctica
High Upon the Wire

Cervantes
Poem from Don Quixote

Dale Wasserman
Lyrics of To Dream the Impossible Dream

Bob Dylan
Only a Pawn in Their Game
Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall
It’s Alright Ma (I’m Only Bleedin’)

Enjoy!
at

5 comments:

  1. LEWagnerOctober 28, 2011 at 10:21 AM

    Sleeping Angel is a cool picture.
    Several of the poems you listed are among my favorites, and some I haven't read. I'm going to try to look them up when/if I get time.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ed NewmanOctober 28, 2011 at 1:05 PM

    Thanks (for comment on Sleeping Angel)....
    Be well.

    ReplyDelete
  3. delhidreamsNovember 16, 2011 at 12:34 PM

    i still remember your 'Hitchhiking Across Antarctica' loved it!
    i may not be familiar with many of these, will make a point to search them :) thanks Ed!

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  4. Ed NewmanNovember 16, 2011 at 7:08 PM

    Thank you, Adee...
    Enjoy the fruits of your searching.
    ed

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousApril 29, 2019 at 12:37 PM

    Thank you so much. Im not very fond of poetry and had trouble finding some poems that are not 40 paragraphs long and too complex for me to understand. Cheers!

    ReplyDelete