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Liked It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “Even people who profess to not understand poetry should be taken by Collins. He's a two-term American poet laureate. No convoluted, obscure sympolism - just simplicity and charm.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“Billy Collins = great poetry.”
Rebecca D wrote this review Friday, October 16 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“One of the best poetry collections I have ever read.”
Ricky P wrote this review Thursday, October 8 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Good poetry and good poet. I actually got to meet him which was really exciting as an aspiring poet myself... ”
Chelsea R wrote this review Monday, September 28 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“I love Billy Collins and his poems!”
Pat M wrote this review Sunday, August 9 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I love Billy Collins. Even if you think you don't like poetry, give Billy Collins a try. His droll humor reminds me of Bob Newhart. He even looks a bit like Newhart. The poems are easy to read and understand. My favorite is about a boy who makes a lanyard as a gift for his mother feeling the lanyard's value is equal to everything the mother has given the boy throughout his life. Any parent will appreciate this poem.”
L. M. Jo wrote this review Friday, July 3 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Wonderful collection of witty poems”
Cynthia P wrote this review Sunday, June 21 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Beautiful, simple, touching and laugh out loud poetry - THE LANYARD is required reading for every mother.”
Ann Y wrote this review Tuesday, June 2 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“If you haven't read any of Billy Collins' poetry you should try it!
melissa k wrote this review Sunday, July 20 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
This is another wonderful collection!”“Lanee gave me a poetry book by Billy Collins--The Trouble with Poetry. I had never heard of Collins, (a reflection of the waning currency of my literary education), although I have since learned that he was poet laureate of our country a few years back, including on September 11, 2001, which I suppose is both a grave responsibility and an immortal opportunity for a poet, whose gaggle of humanity generally lacks responsibility and is easily forgotten. Collins is fun to read. A native New Yorker, he has spent most of his life teaching college in the Bronx, a setting which has doubtless contributed to his unpretentious style. He has a keen eye for the commonplace, not as symbols really, as poets often contrive, but as playing integral roles that evade inspection, taking their turns upon life's stage, sometimes with a single line of timely occasion. The salt shaker may reside in a darkened cabinet most of the time, but what is more important when served a baked potato? So I have enjoyed his refreshing work, despite my usual comfort in structure, meter and rhyme. Collins could care less about any of these, as he is the poet of experience, part common and homespun like Frost and part coarse and plain-spoken like Whitman, mixed with dollop of e.e. cummings' iconoclasm and irony for an American stew made palatable for today's tastes. Here's one I liked: Flock It has been calculated that each copy of the Gutenburg Bible ... required the skins of 300 sheep. --from an article on printing. I can see them squeezed into the holding pen behind the stone building where the printing press is housed, all of them squirming around to find a little room and looking so much alike it would be nearly impossible to count them, and there is no telling which one will carry the news that the Lord is a shepherd, one of the few things they already know.”
Bill A wrote this review Saturday, June 14 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
