Review
"The lyrics in Merrill's "Collected Poems" ought to last as long as people still care about poetry . . . poetry as alive as Merrill's is "why" people care." -- David Gates, "Newsweek"
"Gigantic and ravishing . . . What this new volume provides, not without a small shock even to those familiar with Merrill, is the size and scope of his accomplishment . . . [A] monumental new collection." -- Daniel Mendelsohn, "New York Times Book Review
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"Merrill . . . has been well-served by his executors and editors, McClatchy and Yenser . . . [In this collection] there's more than enough--in humor and sorrow, in tones of voice, in diction, in subjects--to keep one engaged for days, for years, for life. Reading Merrill is like reading Marvell or Keats or Dickinson; having his lines in mind is that unique thing, a voice that says somebody was here before." --Caroline Fraser, "L.A. Times"
"The "Collected Poems" . . . sensitively edited by JD McClatchy and Stephen Yenser . . . represents a major literary event." -- Edmund White, "Out "Magazine
"If you like poetry composed (in Hopkin's words) in 'the current language heightened, ' Merrill will please you . . . If you have despaired of finding words subtle enough for all that goes on between lovers over time; if you are delighted by poetic invention, Merrill will please you. If you are eager for a window into the pangs and pleasures of gay existence, or if you want to know what a person of ever-attentive receptivity might have seen between 1926 and 1995, Merrill will please you. Above all, if you value lightness of touch, Merrill will please you . . . The weight of the wreath is heavy on all poets, but Merrill rarely allowed theweight to be felt, or the wrinkles to show." -- Helen Vendler, "The New Yorker"
Synopsis
Collects fifty years of the author's poetry, celebrating a lifetime of verse.