The Norton Anthology of Poetry by Margaret Ferguson, Mary Jo Salter & Jon Stallworthy

The Norton Anthology of Poetry, Fifth Edition, edited by Margaret Ferguson, Mary Jo Salter and Jon Stallworthy, is one of the most comprehensive single-volume collections of poetry in English. Published by W. W. Norton & Company in 2005, this monumental 2,182-page anthology spans more than a thousand years of verse, making it an exceptionally useful reference for students, teachers, scholars and general readers of poetry.

The Fifth Edition of The Norton Anthology of Poetry contains an impressive 1,828 poems by 334 poets, ranging from medieval literature through the major movements of English and American poetry and into contemporary writing. Its extensive chronological coverage allows readers to follow the development of poetic language, form and technique across centuries while encountering many of the most influential poets in the English-language tradition.

Major writers represented include Geoffrey Chaucer, Edmund Spenser, William Shakespeare, John Milton, Jonathan Swift, William Wordsworth, John Keats and T. S. Eliot, alongside a broad selection of later and contemporary voices. Seventeen poets were newly introduced for this edition, including Richard Wright, Weldon Kees, Robyn Sarah, Charles Bernstein, Anne Carson, Vikram Seth and Simon Armitage.

Beyond the poems themselves, the anthology provides substantial editorial material designed to assist with interpretation and literary study. Biographical information, annotations and discussions of poetic syntax, versification, rhyme, metre and form make this considerably more than a collection of poems. The Norton Anthology of Poetry functions as a serious reference work for English literature and poetry studies.

The Norton Anthology of Poetry is a substantial and authoritative anthology, particularly suitable for university students, teachers, writers and anyone wanting an extensive library of English-language poetry in a single volume.

Condition – Very Good

Very good 2005 paperback. The covers show light general shelf and handling wear, including minor rubbing and creasing at the edges and corners. An ink gift inscription is present on the half-title page, dated 2008. Internally the substantial 2,182-page volume remains clean and well presented, with the binding sound.