The One Year Book of Poetry by Philip Comfort

What normally passes for Christian poetry is often syrupy and singsong-y, but The One Year Book of Poetry is a wonderful exception. Its editors have done an excellent job of compiling devotional poems with hardly a touch of saccharine, and their  choices reflect a wonderful variety of styles from various centuries and Christian traditions. The well-known metaphysical poets are included such as John Donne and George Herbert, but there were many new-to-me poets such as Richard Crashaw and Thomas Traherne. The real strength of this book is its poetry for Advent and Lent, which greatly enhanced my thinking and praying during those seasons.

Each daily reading is two pages. One one side is the poem and the other side is a helpful explanation. Some longer poems are broken up into several readings, which is a painless way to learn to appreciate more complex poetry. This approach, however, is what bothered me this time through. Since I'd read this book twice before, I thought I would try to forgo the explanations and just enjoy the poetry. But I quickly noticed that most of the readings could not be understood without additional help. I'm not against helpful commentary, but I realized that this particular book is not an appropriate recommendation for someone who is looking for an introduction to meatier poetry. It requires too much effort.

Earlier this year I read two other poetry compilations: Six Centuries of Great Poetry and Great Poems of the English Language (1936, OoP). Even though I did not understand all the nuances of every poem, I was able to appreciate the rich language and beautiful imagery of most of them without additional commentary. For me, this is the best way to learn to love poetry.

Do you have a poetry book that you love and can recommend? 

Blessings,