Elizabeth Bishop: Poems, Prose, and Letters (LOA #180) (Library of America)

This is a second-hand volume in excellent condition and for a good price. Praise to the third-party seller.

For my money, this book beats out Bishop's "Collected Poems" (from Farrar Straus & Giroux) or any of the other separate volumes of Bishop's writing (be it letters, prose, etc.). In this volume you not only get all of her collected and uncollected poems, but there's also a very generous selection of her letters and prose. So for all but the most hardcore Bishop fans, this one volume should satisfy most of their Bishop-reading needs. Also, as with all of Library of America's books, this volume is a very handsome edition in hardcover with a very professional binding that will last much longer than any of Bishop's cheaper, soft-cover editions. In addition, I greatly prefer this edition's typography to the above-mentioned "Collected Poems."

Seeing the film, "Reaching for the Moon" about the relationship between the American poet Elizabeth Bishop and Brazilian architect Lota De Macedo Soares rekindled my long-dormant interest in Bishop's oeuvre. It's a wonderful collection that bears re-reading often, or reading for the first time, if you happen not to know her work.

Exactly what I needed for a lecture I am going to!

Good

A brilliant compilation of the prose by Bishop we love, along with some fascinating unpublished pieces and other surprises.

A magnificent voice.

I got this book for my sister as a gift and she absolutely loves it. It is a nice compilation of Elizabeth Bishop's work put out as part of a series of great authors by the Library of America.

The way to read any author new to you is to pick up one of the original publications, a first edition in any impression. You see the work as the author and as the original readers first saw it, an artefact of its time. The Library of America offer 'the boxed set', an anthology devoted to one person. The English equivalent would be the inter-war Nonesuch compendiums and the later Reynard Library The Library of America editions have the same advantages of fine paper, good print and sturdy bindings. The Elizabeth Bishop volume is a perfect example of the benefits of this approach. Bishop is one of the rare poets who change sensibility. She did it very quietly and efficiently, bringing the voice of an intelligent woman out of America. Her poems aim at perfection of craftsmanship: for British readers a Larkin rather than a Hughes. She is amusing and witty and thoughtful and touching. Her letters are a delight. The stories are so-so. The book would make a perfect gift for a poetry reader who hasn't previously explored her work but perhaps will have come across The Sandpiper – one of her handful of masterpieces, 'a perfect lyric' as Yeats might (rather impatiently) call it. She would share his impatience. A superb writer; an excellent edition.

Magical and so worthwhile to read.

This is a very dull cover and the paper is thin and annoying: but the book is beautifully constructed and very good as a complete works from Bishop. I have long wanted to get to know her work and this is a very good way. The Prose could have done with more intro . . and setting out her life line and when she worked with who. A few more friendly editorials won't go a miss.But full of every poem, therefore good for the money.Her pretty photo on the front should have been the cover . . .?

Like all volumes of Library of America, this one is a delight to read! The selection is very comprehensive (has all the best-known, most relevant poems, and many more) and a very interesting sample of her prose and letters to other poets and friends, like Marianne Moore and Robert Lowell.

One of my favourite poets and I'm so glad to have everything in one place. Also enjoyed her Letters to the New Yorker.