Friends of the Aiken Public Library Book List

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Coleridge

This 1797 epic poem tells the tale of a seafarer who encounters some supernatural events in the course of a long sea voyage. The inspiration came for the story when Coleridge, Wordsworth, and his sister Dorothy were discussing a book they had read recently in which Captain George Shelvocke described his voyage around the world.

Collected Poetry by Edgar Allan Poe

While many of Poe's poems share the bizzarre and morbid atmospherics of his short stories, Poe is considered one of the best of American poets. He was a practitioner of what he called "pure poetry". By that he meant message-free verse that is concerned with exploring the essential musical nature of the language rather than with conveying a narrative. As a result, several of Poe's poems are among the best-known and most recited in the English language.

The Spell of the Yukon by Robert W. Service

Service (1874 – 1958) was a Scottish-born Canadian poet and writer. He became known for his work about the West, and the Yukon gold miners. After having collected enough poems for a book, Service offered a publisher $100 of his own money to publish the work, but the publisher was so sure that the works would be popular (he had already taken 1700 offers for sale off the galley proofs), he returned Service's money and offered him a contract.

Sonnets by William Shakespeare

Although all of Shakespeare's plays are poems (they are written in iambic pentameter), the Sonnets were poems specifically written as such to be read and recited, not as drama to be performed on stage.

Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein

A book of children's poetry written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein. The book's poems address many common childhood concerns, as well as presenting purely fanciful stories.

Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman

This book is notable for its delight in and praise of the senses, during a time when such candid displays were considered immoral. Where much previous poetry, especially English, relied on symbolism, allegory, and meditation on the religious and spiritual, Leaves of Grass (particularly the first edition) exalted the body and the material world. Influenced by the Transcendentalist movement, itself an offshoot of Romanticism, Whitman's poetry praises nature and the individual human's role in it.

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