The Complete Poems: Anne Sexton

How i love this book. The poet is tough and all her poems are testimony to that fact. Maybe she was the point of the spear demanding that women's be heard and then seemingly brushed aside as more gentile voices emerged.

She's a great poet. So many good poems!

Sexton has often been criticized for creating "workshop" poetry. We shouldn't think of this as a negative. A workshop merely opens the mind to writing methods that haven't dawned on some of us. Those who jot down magnificent poetry with no formal education are a special breed, indeed. Some writers need a teacher to open the window for them. And for the lot of us, we can't afford an Ivy League Education, as is the case with some of our greatest poetic minds. Sexton, who attended these workshops, is a classic example of someone who needed a little push. And once that window was opened for her, she stepped into that other-world and never looked back. "The Awful Rowing Toward God" is, in itself, a masterpiece. The poetry is quite dark and brooding, grim even. Though Sexton suffered much of her life due to mental problems, she was able to express her inner-turmoil on paper, and for that I am grateful. Her writing is provocative at times, and she really pushed the envelope for her day. Much of her work is simple, and relatively easy to analyze and comprehend. It is enjoyment, pure and simple, though some of it can dampen even the most optimistic person's mood. It is unfortunate that we lost her as early as we did. Bottom line: Excellent collection, though the binding and paper-type is subpar, so you shouldn't expect it to last for decades.

I listened to an interview in which Madonna mentioned that Anne Sexton's poetry influenced her. I was intrigued enough to research Anne Sexton because I'd never heard of her. Once I read a little about Sexton, I knew I needed to read her poetry, if for no other reason than to see if I could learn anything from her work that would help my own poetry writing. So I decided to buy The Complete Poems Anne Sexton. I opted to take my time and only read a few poems a day when I started The Complete Poems Anne Sexton. I wanted to think about the poems, to really internalize them, to study style, to learn from them. Some days it was tempting to read several. Other days I found it a struggle to read even one. Sexton played with words and social norms in ways that I can only imagine upset people when they were published. Her poems ripped into fairy tales and religion with the same irreverence in a way I found refreshing at times and uncomfortable at others, but those poems always made me think as good poetry should. She tackled life head-on in some poems and wrote all around topics in others. I found myself relating to her need to both expose and hide. Certain poems resonated with me on a deep level. Others had me scrambling for meaning. Still others inspired me to try new ideas in my own poetry. As I consciously and slowly worked my way through the over 600 pages of poems, I discovered some limits I didn't know I had. I thought how I'd never feel comfortable writing about some of the topics Sexton covered, but I also discovered a desire to push my work in different directions. The thing that's always interesting about a complete work is its range. There are poems in this book that will appeal to many as well as poems people will find offensive. And, while it shows a great deal of insight into the human condition, there are times when it feels incredibly, personally voyeuristic. I love poems that go to the depths of human experience, so this appealed to me.

My high school teacher introduced me to Anne's poetry and I've loved being able to finally finish reading this book. Thank you, Mr. Moss.

Anne Sexton is simply Anne Sexton- she is who she is. She is my favorite poet and this book contains an excellent compendium of her work as well as a biography of her life. I really have to be in the mood for this. She always struck me as more readable than Sylvia Plath to whom she is often compared. Her material written while in the psychiatric hospital resonates with the timbre of too much time, solitude and realization tempered with her talent and trauma. This is best read in doses as the mood strikes.

First, for the seller, Buckeye Tree Book and Media Emporium, you need to be less modest with your book quality. This book was used, rated as "acceptable," and was in fact, "very good," in my opinion. Signs of wear were minimum. As to Anne Sexton's poetry, I knew what I was getting, as I read several poems from the online version, which is available to "borrow" through Amazon Prime. Basically, if you like Sylvia Plath's poetry, you will probably like Anne Sexton. It's confessional, personal, and much of it is grim, but not all of it. I still prefer Sylvia, but I enjoy Anne as well. It is fairly easy to find her poetry online to see if one might like it. There are also YT videos of Anne reading some of her own poems. Definitely read or listen to some first to see if this is your cup of tea.

You like Sexton? If you are reading this review, you probably do. If you are a Sexton fan, you get this book. It's that simple. I actually purchased it twice, once in hardcover and then in paperback so now I have a back up in case something happens to one of them. I have one cat with a spraying problem, so backups are a good idea.