Poetry > J Poetry > C

Advantages: Hard hitting, raw energy
Disadvantages: sometimes a bit oblique

...accomplished musician and poet. Fear of Dreaming is a compilation of poem culled from two previous books and featuring many new works. Carroll's poetry is hard hitting and surreal. He has a keen knack for rubbing against raw nerves. His intensity is startling. Many poems deal specifically with his experiences in life. He deals openly with his heroin addiction. Ultimately, he did survive the demons that threatened to destroy him. The city seems to ... Read review

Advantages: The book that the musical 'Cats' was based upon.
Disadvantages: None.

...with illustrations by Nicolas Bentley. Old Possums 'Book Of Practical Cats' is one of my favourite books of T.S.Eliot and it is this book and its cat characters that the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical 'Cats' was based upon. Cats have characters all of their own and they are each unique and individual. My two cats are brother and sister and they are entirely different in character. I have a blue cat which is the male and he is massive, a huge Tomcat, ...
...ever meet. Whereas his sister, who is a tortoiseshell, is dainty and like a princess and she demands special treatment at every turn, much to the dismay of my BlueBoy. They are both entirely different characters, but from the same litter; Much like children, cats need names to suit the type of personality and look that they possess. To call the amazing, beautiful, mysterious, magical, secretive and naughty housecat 'Kitty', is demeaning the many ... Read review

Advantages: Easy to read, great for kids.
Disadvantages: if you dislike cats.

This book of poetry is upon which 'Cats, The musical' is based upon. The rythmical reading of Shimbleshanks: the Railway cat is just beautiful and i would suggest any parents with children interested in cats or pets should but this, it'll keep them entertained night after night and they will probably start joining in with funny lines and the clap of the 'train' rhyme. Even if you haven't seen Cats you'll still enjoy this book. If you and children ... Read review

Advantages: Easy to read
Disadvantages: too thoughtful and melancholy for some

I really enjoyed reading this collection of poetry. Plath has a graphic imagination evident in poems such as 'Cut' and her imagery is at times explicit but so apt. 'Morning song' is yet another beautiful poem. The title plays upon the two seperate meanings of 'morning' and 'mourning'. Describing a mother's feelings after birth, Plath describes her as 'cow heavy' using the image of the lactating mother and effortlessly transferring it to the accurate ...
...Plath's poetry is as intriguing as her life. People might suggest her poetry is depressing and such but i urge you to read it. She has such a way with words. Also i would highly recommend reading 'The Bell Jar'. A fascinating insight into the world of insanity through the eyes of a young girl. ... Read review

Advantages: Strong yet simple messages
Disadvantages: May be hard to understand these messages fully for younger readers

Beautiful poems, with both simple and complex meanings and I definitely recommend it to anyone who appreciates poetry or literature. After studying Heaney's poetry for GCSE, and loving it, I personally went to Heaney's birthplace in Ireland, and now all his poems have an even more vivid meaning to me. My 2 favourites - 'Death of a Naturalist' and 'Digging' 'Death of a Naturalist' tells of a young boy's fascination with nature, presented through ...
...and 'sweltering'. Heaney uses imagery and phonology to great effect, and contrasts the boy's emotions to those of the reader. In the 2nd stanza, we return to the pond scene, but now the narrator - presumably Heaney - is terrified by the violent, grotesque nature of frogs, contrasting his earlier love for frogspawn. 'Death of a Naturalist' reflects growing up, and how children lose their childhood fancies as they mature. 'Digging' tells of a man - ... Read review