Getting into poetry

What do you think of when you hear the word poetry?  I know I used to see it as something way out of my intellectual league; some obscure, arty, and incomprehensible form of literature.  I always enjoyed reading poetry at school, the way you can read between the lines and the skill and talent the author must have when they pick out one word to encompass a whole range of emotions and feelings.  But after school, poetry dropped off my reading radar.  Recently though, I've found myself gravitating towards reading poems.  I think it started with seeing beautiful, poetic quotes from poets or writers I recognised on Pinterest and since then, I've even bought or been gifted a couple of poetry anthologies so I thought I'd share what I've been reading.

My first foray into the world of poetry anthologies was Penguin's Poems for Life.  The book is divided up into sections, mapping our lives from the moment we are born to after we have died, poems of mourning or commemoration.  It includes modern day poets like Carol Ann Duffy and Lemn Sissay and classic poets Chaucer and Shakespeare.  In it, I found poems that I hadn't read for years and re-reading them was like a lightbulb switching on in my mind and taking me back to years ago!  Poems that remind me of people or certain times in my life.  What I love about this book, is that it's so accessible: you don't have to know much about poetry at all.  Great for newbies like me!  

Veinte Poemas de Amor y Una Canción Desperada is an anthology by Pablo Neruda.  Although my copy is in Spanish, he writes some of the most beautiful poems I have ever read.  I've heard that the English translations do not do the complexity of his language justice but I would definitely recommend looking him up  His sonnets are also well-known and equally stunning. 

The latest anthology I have bought is Poem for the Day One, which has a poem from every day of the year.  I think that's a nice way to start introducing yourself into poetry as it can be so overwhelming to think where to begin!  This anthology covers a wide range of poets, eras, and styles, similar to the Poem's for Life collection.  When I first picked this book up, I just started looking up important dates to me and began from there.  Again, it's a lovely way to introduce yourself to the world of poetry amd I have the following editions on my 'to-buy' list!

What I love most about these books is that you can pick them up, have a flick through for two, five, ten minutes, whatever time you have, and read.  Sometimes I do think about them a little bit more or other times, I just let the words wash over me.  You can gain so much from reading a poem and sometimes one or two lines just stick with you throughout the day.  

Do you enjoy poetry?