Complete Sonnets (Dover Thrift Editions: Poetry) - Softcover

William Shakespeare

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0486266869 ISBN 13: 9780486266862

Publisher: Dover Publications, 1991

Synopsis

Without a doubt the most important of Shakespeare's nondramatic works, the sonnets have engendered reams of scholarly disputation as to the identity of "the dark lady" and the "lovely boy" to whom the vast majority are addressed. Controversy has also long simmered over the full name of the "W.H." of the dedication. What is not in dispute is the superior quality of these lyrics, which rank among the finest sonnets ever written — in any language.
Overt 150 poems deal with love, friendship, the tyranny of time, beauty's evanescence in power, death, and other themes in language unsurpassed in power, precision, and beauty. Now this inexpensive Dover edition enables any lover of poetry or fine literature to have this exquisite verse in his or her personal library. A brief glossary illuminates a number of archaic terms.

About this title

About the Author

"He was not of an age, but for all time," declared Ben Jonson of his contemporary William Shakespeare (1564–1616). Jonson's praise is especially prescient, since at the turn of the 17th century Shakespeare was but one of many popular London playwrights and none of his dramas were printed in his lifetime. The reason so many of his works survive is because two of his actor friends, with the assistance of Jonson, assembled and published the First Folio edition of 1623.

From AudioFile

The Complete Sonnets is a handy resource for lovers of these poems. Recorded in consecutive order, with each actor reading in shifts of one or two sonnets, this production really does let the poem, in this case, be the thing. There's not much introduction before each sonnet besides the announcement of the next number. While it's nice to hear different readers deliver the poems, the transitions are, on occasion, jarring; one just settles into the timbre of a voice only to have it suddenly altered. Overall, the collection is a great resource and would make an excellent gift for a Shakespeare fan. R.A.P. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Edition details

• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Publication date: 1991
• ISBN 10: 0486266869
• ISBN 13: 9780486266862
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 74