Joseph Lease's Broken World is a lament, a jazz melody, an explanation of how the world (both personal and political) ends. These poems keenly, delicately explore all that is no longer here and never-was-but-should-have-been. Lease's lines are formally austere, using the page and caesura to evoke the space needed for the ideas he presents. These poems exercise a vulnerable, wry negative-awareness that nonetheless accepts us, not in spite of, but rather exactly for everything we lack as individuals and as a nation. "The elegies are taking off their clothes--" (p. 39): indeed they are, and with such abandon. -- Trevor Calvert

In this deep reading of the poetic enterprise - with chapters from "Defending Poetry" to "Divine Parameters" - Parini shows why poetry matters through revealing how, and of what, poems are made. "Poems are made things...Poetry is conversation." This is a great introduction to, defense of, and deep dive into the poetic world - enlightening, conversational and useful. -- John Evans

My first encounter with David Hinton was a slim volume of poetry entitled The Selected Poems of Li Po. The translations felt fresh and alive and I read and re-read that book many times. For me, it was the language that I kept going back for - or, really, the not-language. Paired with the concise and vivid nature of Chinese poetry, Hinton's use of space and his attention to sound allows the mystery in each image a chance to blossom, and I say a chance because the poems never feel finished, they continue to grow and unfurl with each new read. This newest anthology, Classical Chinese Poetry, is just as wonderful. Hinton includes selections from all the early classics (The Book of Songs, Tao Te Ching, Songs of Ch'u, and a large selection of Tang poetry) but also gives his readers a chance to visit other folk-song collections and versions of poems which I personally had never seen before, including a wonderful series of seasonal poems by Lady Midnight. Aside from beautiful translations, the reader also gets many historical aids, in-depth notes and a large reference for future reading. Any fan of Chinese poetry, history, poetics or poetry in general should take a look at this wonderful collection. It is a beautiful edition and one I will pull from my shelf again and again over the years. -- Sean Mix

William Stafford was a conscientious objector during the second World War. These poems are filled with the compassion and insight Stafford earned during his forced enrollment in the Civilian Public Service program as a result of his ethical views. Written sometimes with a zen-like plainness that was unusual for American poetry at the time, one can see the early development of this wonderful artist. - Sean Mix

David Berman -- lead singer and songwriter for The Silver Jews -- writes lilting, funny poems steeped in Americana from the Deep South. His air is thick and humid, a smoky, wry wit. There is dialogue here, too; punchy conversational notes between himself and reader, not marked but inserted casually - archetypes as quirk, sewn together by a narrative thread celebrating life. Exquisite. - Grant