Why Poetry Matters (Why X Matters Series)

I've come to poetry kind of late in my life. I attended a poetry reading in 2006 that woke me up and since then I've tried to backfill my knowledge and experience of poetry. Jay Parini's book wraps it all up for me, but I don't see why it wouldn't be a very helpful book for poets themselves. It covers a lot of ground but everything it says seems essential. You don't have to be a specialist to understand where he's going. His reasons for "why poetry matters" are clearly stated and backed up with interesting examples. I would think that teachers of English and literature at all levels could derive much value from this book. For me, it's just about the best single book I've found on the subject. There's a nice review of this book on [...] which is where I heard about it.

Jay Parini's new book is an elegant and insightful response to Dana Gioia's essay "Can Poetry Matter?" His book not only argues persuasively for the role of poetry in contemporary society; it also provides a historical survey of poetry and ideas about poetry. Parini is as compelling in his discussions of Horace and Virgil as he is in his discussions of Frost and Eliot, Snyder and Gluck. His witty, clear-eyed prose makes his tour of western poetry both educational and entertaining. Anyone interested in poetry will learn from this book. Professors looking for a good introduction to poetry should order it for their classes. Henry Hart

Parini reminds us of two of poetry's great strengths: surprise and mystery. In the middle ages, a man's craft was also called his "mystery." Poetry matters because it can make us feel more fully alive to the mysteries of common life. We bring our own past to bear on poetry's metaphors to achieve a great consolation, a way to be sympathetic with another human being's private utterance. Of course this can be the aim of all arts, but it is especially true with poetry--and Parini tells us why. Poetry can remove the blinders in an age of media speak, sound bites, and rhetorical tricks. Poetry is language in its most pure state. The poet discovers the poem in a surprising way as he composes, and the reader recreates this experience during a close reading. The poem invites us to savor language. Mr. Parini stands up for poetry's importance. Every age, he reminds us, has had to do this from time to time. Mr. Parini shows how poetry can matter in our lives and in our children's classrooms. He shows us (through many examples of individual poems) that "poetry is a language adequate to our experience." Sadly, poetry will begin to matter less and less if we don't teach future generations to delight in its verbal discoveries. This book can serve as a preventive against that catastrophe.

Parini's latest work is superb. His extensive knowledge of the poetic form shines through from beginning to end while his love of poetry and concise and easy to comprehend writing style makes this book a perfect companion for both the poet as well as the poetically challenged. The book not only explores the great poets of history, but also includes anecdotes afforded by Parini's deep knowledge of each poet and the events and lives that influenced them and their craft. As a person myself who once cursed poetry but now embraces it, I would recommend this book to poetry's critics and patrons alike.

This is a book for those who once loved poetry and let that love die from neglect. It is also a book for those who continue to have a life-long passion for the art, but need the reassurance that there are others out there in this tragically unpoetic time who share that passion. Imagine that time when poetry first entered your heart and vibrated through your whole being; for me it was a spring day in an open windowed elementry school classroom and my adored Language Arts teacher spoke the name "Shelley." The same sensation will return when you read this loving book. Buy it, read it, carry it with you (as I do)and open its pages when your soul needs some fresh air. It will not disappoint.