The Teachers & Writers Handbook of Poetic Forms

by Ron Padgett

Book Overview

This bestselling reference guide includes 76 entries on traditional and modern poetic forms. Defined in alphabetical order, each entry is allotted 1-7 pages with examples and histories of-and ideas... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0915924234
• ISBN13: 9780915924233
• Release Date: January 1987
• Publisher: Teachers & Writers Collaborative
• Length: 230 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Sorry.

Not like new.... I do not like.... I want to take the Book every week. But if I want "like new" it is must been "like new"

Simply the Best Poetry Handbook

No adequate superlative exists for this poetry handbook--simply the best on the market. Rarely does a writing handbook work for all age groups, but this solid one does. Even elementary teachers could use some of the poetic forms, such as couplets, haiku, and nonsense poems, for their classes, and, yet, professional writers can dip into this densely rich (yet compact) volume and pull out an appropriate form from the 75+ forms offered. I have used this handbook for my college creative writing classes since 1998; as writing fads come and go, this poetry handbook endures because it offers a simple, yet interesting, approach to writing poetry: a short history of the form; a brief explanation on how the form works; when appropriate, a sample poem (or verses) showing the form in action; and, in some cases, a diagram for the more complicated forms, such as the sestina and pantoum. Semester after semester, my students praise this book, and many decide to keep it for their libraries, instead of reselling it to the college bookstore. I keep searching, but I have not been able to find its fiction handbook counterpart. Ron Padgett has done a fine job of compiling the forms, researching their histories, and finding stellar sample poems to show how the forms work. I hope this handbook NEVER goes out of print!

a useful addition for the writer's toolbox

This is a wonderful reference book for poets who want to expand their repertoire. Over seventy poetic forms are covered, and each section includes: an explanation of the form, discussion of any variations on the form, at least one literary example, and reference to other prominent examples and/or poets who use the form. I've used this book for many years as a jumping-off point when in search of inspiration or when playing around with a different poetic form. It's easy to read and can be used by people with a variety of experience, from beginners to professionals, and from school-aged to the time-ripened crowd.

One of my favorite books

I use this book all the time! I've had it for over 10 years and find myself continually going back to it. Recently I began writing a poem every morning before getting out of bed, and this book is invaluable for helping wake up my brain and start the creative juices flowing. The forms are clearly defined with good examples given, and the sheer number of forms included is inspiring! If one isn't working for me that morning, I simply flip to another. I've used this book with teenagers and with adults in poetry-writing exercises--it works well with all ages.

Wonderful book for writers as well as teachers!

This book is my favorite poetry handbook--and I have several--because it covers so many forms in such an clear, undry (i.e. entertaining) way. It's fun to read. I've taught poetry writing at about 40 elementary schools through the Writers in the Schools programs and children's literature at the University of Iowa. The Handbook gives a passel of forms that can be used with kids of all ages. In the children's lit class, the book was a means of showing the wide variety of forms. The undergrad students in that class, most of whom weren't that familiar with poetry, were dazzled by all the possibilities that the book opened up. As a writer, I enjoy reading about the different forms and examples. You can try writing in one of the forms, or try making up a new form based on forms in the book. Either way, you learn, you enjoy, you think, and you write, thanks to the Handbook.

The only book a poet needs

For the Handbook, 19 teaching poets have written 74 entries on traditional and modern poetic forms. The Handbook succinctly defines the forms, summarizes their histories, quotes good examples (ancient and modern, by adult and young writers), and offers professional tricks of the trade on how to use each form. "Free of academic verbiage, the definitions not only inform, they often provoke and inspire. A small wonder!" - The Poetry Project Newsletter. "The best thing that can be said for a handbook to poetry is that when you pick it up, you can and what you're looking for, and it clearly written, and be satisfied that what you've read is sufficient and authoritative. Thanks to this book one gets those necessary uses and much more.... This colorful, graphically pleasing, and entertaining reference work is what can happen when those who actually practice and preach poetry present their knowledge in a clear, friendly, and straightforward manner" - Teaching English in the Two-Year College. "You can't get a quicker, smarter course in what poetry's been up to for millennia" - The Millennium Whole Earth Catalog. "Browsing through the pages is an excellent way to realize the remarkable variety and richness of poetic forms. A solid beginning reference source for poetics" - Choice. A good companion to T & W's Poetic Forms audiotapes.