With Robert Lowell and His Circle: Sylvia Plath, Anne Sexton, Elizabeth Bishop, Stanley Kunitz & Others Paperback – Illustrated, November 13, 2012

With Robert Lowell and His Circle bursts with the energy of being young and creative. It glows with the presence of some of the greatest American poets, including Lowell, Plath, Sexton, Rich, Bishop, and Bidart. It also displays the unpretentious, funny, savvy voice of Kathleen Spivack. That interplay between Spivack and the amazing poets she became friends with, described in an accessible yet poetic style, drives the narrative forward. The book is a pleasure journey of good stories and unfolding insights. It is also the story of Spivack herself, growing up in this company, becoming her own person, and becoming a poet on her own terms.This is the best memoir yet about Robert Lowell. Unlike Sarah Payne Stuart’s nicely written My First Cousin Once Removed, this book is written by someone who knew Lowell well and understood what his poetry was about. Unlike Richard Tillinghast’s excellent Robert Lowell’s Life and Work: Damaged Grandeur, this book does not incorporate academic critique. And unlike the many brief memoirs published in journals and collections, this memoir is a sustained narrative. Spivack tells more about Lowell than does any previous memoirist. Moreover, this is a memoir not only of Lowell but of an age. Plath, Sexton, Bishop, Kunitz, and Rich appear and reappear, sometimes according with the picture we previously had of them but often in a new light.I was particularly struck by the portrait of Plath. Before now, such portraits have been written by her friends or enemies, but here she is described by an acquaintance, and we see the face Plath presented to those who did not know her well—reserved, pent-up, inward, and ambitious. It’s a face we really haven’t seen before. It’s an absorbing, vivid portrayal. The portrait of Sexton is equally distinguished. It accords very well with my own memories of the poet—her talent and beauty intermixed with her despair. And the portrait of Lowell is detailed, complex, and fascinating.Spivack’s book has exactly what one wants in a memoir: specifics, a good story well told, an observant eye, a witty yet emotionally rich speaking voice. It is more than a record of a significant creative movement in American letters. It is also a late, unexpected example of the art that movement produced—a candid, sympathetic, perceptive recreation of a key moment in American literary history. Anyone interested in poetic genius and celebrity will have a hard time putting it down.

I simply love it! Didn't know anything about Kathleen Spivack but did study Lowell, Plath, Rich, Bishop and Sexton during my college days. They still remain my favorites. Kathleen Spivack has been a wonderful find for me which leads me to read all her works. Thank you Kathleen for making me read again!

If you want an autobiography of Kathleen Spivack, then this is a good book for you. If you wanted to learn anything about Robert Lowell,Anne Sexton,Sylvia Plath, or Elizabeth Bishop you will be greatly disappointed. The title of this book is very misleading the author writes basically about herself and her own feelings not about this subject the title implies. There are too many other good books out there dealing with these poets to waste your money on this one.

The comment about With Robert Lowell and His Circle being very repetitive is accurate. It seems that with a good editor, this book might have been trimmed down and cleaned up to be an excellent book. Nevertheless, if you are interested in someone who has had first-hand experience with Lowell, Plath, Sexton, Bishop, et al, this is a valuable book to read. I particularly enjoyed the settings and context; these are important details so often overlooked in favor of the drama of these "confessional" poets. Spivack was witness to a very important time in American poetry when a new voice would rise up against both the old classical form and the trendy beatniks. A poet and Sylvia Plath scholar/writer myself, I went into this book to find new information on Plath (and I got some), but I also very much enjoyed learning about the other writers and their influences upon each other.

As the author of Not at All What One Is Used To, the biography of Robert Lowell's cousin, poet Isabella Gardner, I am very interested in books about mid-century poets and poetry. I loved this one: very atmospheric, very personal and touching.

This book is very accurate and a wonderful ride through a time and place that was quite special. It's really a collection of essays and vignettes that convey the flavor of a unique moment in literary history. Enjoy it!

I actually know the author, so of course I bought the book. It's a good view into that fascinating group of poets by the youngest member of the poetry group, a well-known poet herself. Well worth reading.

The book turned out to be a self-serving, name-dropping memoir by the author. I didn't get past the intro and the first several pages.