In this series, a contemporary poet selects and introduces a poet of the past. By their selection of verses and by the personal and critical reactions they express in their introductions, the selectors offer a passionate and accessible introduction to some of the greatest poets in history.[...]

Housman's melodic and memorable poems have been popular for over a century. He writes typically of lost love, of the brevity of happiness, of young soldiers doomed to die. Admirers have found his work elegant and resonant; detractors have thought much of it mannered and glib. But Housman speaks with[...]

A.E. Housman was one of the best-loved poets of his day, and "A Shropshire Lad and Other Poems" is a collection of poems whose elegant simplicity of form belies their hidden complexities. This "Penguin Classics" edition is introduced by Nick Laird with revisions by Archie Burnett and an afterword by[...]

A.E. Housman (1859-1936) was a man of many apparent contradictions, most of which remain unresolved 150 years after his birth. At once a deeply emotive lyric poet and a precise and dedicated classical scholar, he achieved fame in both of these diverse disciplines. Although his poetic legacy has rece[...]