American Poetry Since 1950: Innovators and Outsiders, an Anthology

There are not many anthologies of which you can say they are needed, but this is may be one of them. Eliot Weinberger, best known as a translator of Latin American poetry (especially that of Octavio Paz), has done an admirable job here of articulating how innovation in American poetry was taking place from the 1950s through the 1970s and even into the 1990s. The volume's subtitle, "Innovators and Outsiders," can be misleading, as many of the thirty-five poets included here are now among the most familiar to contemporary readers, few of whom would consider the likes of Williams, Pound, H.D., Creeley, Ginsberg, etc. "outsiders." Yet, all of these poets were or are innovators. Weinberger has put together a fascinating "narrative" and a refreshing, personal rereading of poetry in the U.S. from around 1950 on. (You can quibble all you want with the selection, and some readers, myself included, will find some of the poetry here just awful, but Weinberger's justification for this volume in the brief introductory note is outstanding.) Just as importantly, his brief essay following the selections, "American Poetry Since 1950: A Very Brief History" is offers an excellent and insightful overview of how major creative tendencies have followed one after another in the past fifty years.

This is an excellent cross-section of late twentieth century poetry....of course it leaves some favorites out and includes poets I am not particularly enamored with but ultimately I have used this book a great deal.....highly recommended...I am especially pleased with the inclusion of Ronald Johnson......very interesting work....