English Poetry

Sometimes only a poem will do. These poetic prescriptions and wise words of advice are tailored to those moments in life when we need them most, from general glumness to news overload, and from infatuation to losing the spark. Whatever you’re facing, there is a poem here that will do the trick. This pocket-size companion presents the most essential fixes in William Sieghart’s poetic dispensary - those that, again and again, have shown themselves to hit the spot.

In this exquisite poetry collection, Whitney Hanson chronicles the loss of a loved one, tracing the progression of grief and healing through the lens of music. We each begin with a simple note, but as life progresses, we’re led to the next note, and the next—all of which combine to form the melody of a song and a life. As life becomes more complicated and complex, we find that loss, grief, and heartache can muffle our music, making the world go silent.

The Fable of the Bees—a satirical poem, prose discussion, three essays and six dialogues completed in 1729—exposes human vices but defends them as a necessity within a wealthy society. Mandeville’s bees thrive until they start living by honesty and virtue… then they are impoverished. Mandeville did not play by the rules: he satirized the sins of society but also ridiculed the widespread hypocrisy of deploring these sins whilst reaping their benefits. He and his work were attacked for the rest of the century.

Six short stories. Worlds of possibilities. The future, both near and distant. Alternate and plausible realities. Messages of hope and of doom. Fate, chance, and definitely choices.

Radiant and tender, My Baby First Birthday is a collection that examines innocence, asking us who gets to be loved and who has to deplete themselves just to survive. It's about existence and nonexistence, about being born - without consent. Jenny Zhang writes about accepting pain, about the way we fetishize womanhood and motherhood, and reduce women to their violations, traumas, and body parts.

Heartbreak and grief touch every soul at least once in a lifetime, and Ranata Suzuki translates those raw emotions into words. The Longest Night combines strikingly poignant quotations, powerfully emotive poetry, and captivating silhouette imagery to form a mournful lover's journal that explores a side of love that is deep, dark, and hauntingly beautiful.

The final work from Leonard Cohen, Canada's most celebrated poet and an artist whose audience spans generations and whose work is known and loved throughout the world.

For the most part, Hannah's life is just how she wants it. She has two supportive parents, she's popular at school, and she's been killing it at gymnastics. But when her cousin Cal moves in with her family, everything changes. Cal tells half-truths and tall tales, pranks Hannah constantly, and seems to be the reason her parents are fighting more and more. Nothing is how it used to be. She knows that Cal went through a lot after his mom died, and she is trying to be patient, but most days Hannah just wishes Cal never moved in.

Join in the adventure with Sugarlump the rocking horse when a unicorn grants his every wish, help the Singing Mermaid escape the circus and return to her seaside home, join Josephine and her extraordinary new shoes for an action-packed adventure and much more! This magical collection features seven much-loved stories from the best-selling picture-book partnership of Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks, creators of What the Ladybird Heard.

George wished he wasn't the scruffiest giant in town. So when he sees a new shop selling giant-size clothes, he decides it's time for a new look: smart trousers, smart shirt, stripy tie, shiny shoes. Now he's the smartest giant in town...until he bumps into some animals who desperately need his help - and his clothes! Perfect for listening to at home, in the car, at bedtime - or any time at all!

Edward Alexander Crowley was born on 12th October 1875 to wealthy parents in Royal Leamington Spa in Warwickshire. Life for Crowley was to abandon his parents’ Christian faith and instead to inject himself into Western esotericism. In 1898, he joined the esoteric Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and was trained in ceremonial magic before studying both Hindu and Buddhist practices in India. His literary works were both prolific and covered many topics. In the early part of his career he published many poetry books, even plays, before his darker and more forceful works.

This poetry collection celebrates the impossible truths of the natural world and the magic that hides in plain sight. Poet and podcaster Jarod K. Anderson (creator of The CryptoNaturalist podcast) has built a large audience of social media followers and podcast listeners with his strange, vibrant appreciations of nature. Ranging from contemplations of mortality to appreciations of single-celled organisms, the poems in this collection highlight our connection to a living universe and affirm our place in a wilderness worthy of our love.

The Song of Roland is acknowledged today as the first masterpiece of French vernacular literature and one of the world’s greatest epic poems. Written down around the year 1090, The Song of Roland finely crafted verses tell of the betrayal and defeat of Charlemagne’s beloved nephew at the Pass of Roncevaux in the Pyrenees and of the revenge subsequently sought on his behalf.

After a painting triggers strange memories, Ben Martin comes to Paradise, Pennsylvania, in search of answers. Although Annie and this enchanting outsider are from different worlds, she wonders why Ben's kindness seems so familiar and his presence so calming to her - and to the troubled husband of her best friend.

Pattyn’s father is dead. Now she’s on the run in this riveting companion to the New York Times best-selling Burned. Pattyn Von Stratten’s father is dead, and Pattyn is on the run. After far too many years of abuse at the hands of her father, and after the tragic loss of her beloved Ethan and their unborn child, Pattyn is desperate for peace. Only her sister Jackie knows what happened that night, but she is stuck at home with their mother, who clings to normalcy by allowing the truth to be covered up by their domineering community leaders.

Virgil's Aeneid, one of the greatest classical poems, tells the story of Aeneas, son of Priam, after the fall of Troy. His quest is to find the site "in the west" where he will found a new town prophesied to be the seat of a world empire: Rome.

In 1855, Walt Whitman published, at his own expense, the first edition of Leaves of Grass, a visionary volume of 12 poems. Showing the influence of a uniquely American form of mysticism known as Transcendentalism, the writing is distinguished by an explosively innovative free-verse style and previously unmentionable subject matter. Exalting nature, celebrating the human body, and praising the senses and sexual love, this monumental work, now a classic of American poetry, was condemned as immoral upon publication.

Sensual, macabre, joyous and liberating, The Flowers of Evil, or Les Fleurs du Mal, is a beautifully debauched reflection on dreams, sin, life, and death. With subjects ranging from travel to drugs, sex to faith, sleep to contemplation, Baudelaire finds new beauty in the most sinister and corrupt of situations. His morbid and nightmarish Romanticism was completely unique: cynical and bleak, but also inspiring. The book was highly controversial upon its release and Napoleon III’s government prosecuted Baudelaire for "an insult to public decency".

In this audiobook, I first read the poem in slow enunciated French then use simple, everyday French language to explain each individual verse. I then talk about the life of the author, give a full analysis of the poem and finally re-read the poem at a faster speed with a more personal interpretation. Not only is it a great cultural subject but it's a fantastic way to learn new vocabulary, verb tenses and improve your understanding of deeper conversations.

The world can feel like a lonely place, especially at night, when you're staying up till three in the morning, unable to sleep and with your thoughts running wild. D. R. Nguyen captures the feeling of isolation, depression, and chasing a dream through poetry and prose in his captivating collection of poems book Dark Days Lonely Nights read by the author.