The Trouble With Poetry and Other Poems by Collins, Billy

UsedAcceptable. The item is very worn but continues to work perfectly. Signs of wear can include aesthetic issues such as scratches, dents, worn and creased covers, folded page corners and minor liquid stains. All pages and the cover are intact, but the dust cover may be missing. Pages may include moderate to heavy amount of notes and highlighting, but the text is not obscured or unreadable. Page edges may have foxing (age related spots and browning). May NOT include discs, access code or other supplemental materials.

UsedGood. Some foxing and/or discoloration around edges. Shows minimal wear such as frayed or folded edges, minor rips and tears, and/or slightly worn binding. May have stickers and/or contain inscription on title page. No observed missing pages.

UsedGood. This copy has some minor shelf wear. The pages are clean, free of underlining, highlighting or notes. The binding is tight.

Playfulness, spare elegance, and wit epitomize the poetry of Billy Collins. With his distinct voice and accessible language, America's two-term Poet Laureate has opened the door to poetry for countless people for whom it might otherwise remain closed.

Like the present book's title, Collins's poems are filled with mischief, humor, and irony, "Poetry speaks to all people, it is said, but here I would like to address / only those in my own time zone"–but also with quiet observation, intense wonder, and a reverence for the everyday: "The birds are in their trees, / the toast is in the toaster, / and the poets are at their windows. / They are at their windows in every section of the tangerine of earth–the Chinese poets looking up at the moon, / the American poets gazing out / at the pink and blue ribbons of sunrise."

Through simple language, Collins shows that good poetry doesn't have to be obscure or incomprehensible, qualities that are perhaps the real trouble with most "serious" poetry: "By now,… Read More

Random House Trade Paperbacks. Used - Like New. 2007. First Edition. Paperback. Small publishers mark to text block. Otherwise, Fine.

Random House Trade Paperbacks. Used - Very Good. 2007. Paperback. Very Good.

Random House Trade Paperbacks. Used - Good. Good condition. A copy that has been read but remains intact. May contain markings such as bookplates, stamps, limited notes and highlighting, or a few light stains.

Random House Trade Paperbacks, March 2007. Paperback. Used - Very Good.

Random House Trade Paperbacks, March 2007. Paperback. Used - Very Good.

Random House Trade Paperbacks, March 2007. Paperback. Used - Very Good.