Poetry

The Best American Poetry 2020

The Best American Poetry 2020

  • Downloads：2306
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-06-08 06:55:41
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Paisley Rekdal
  • ISBN：1982106603
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
  • Download

Summary

The 2020 edition of contemporary American poetry returns， guest edited by Paisley Rekdal， the award-winning poet and author of Nightingale， proving that this is “a ‘best’ anthology that really lives up to its title” （Chicago Tribune）。

Since 1988， The Best American Poetry anthology series has been “one of the mainstays of the poetry publication world” （Academy of American Poets）。 Each volume in the series presents some of the year’s most remarkable poems and poets。

Now， the 2020 edition is guest edited by Utah’s Poet Laureate Paisely Rekdal， called “a poet of observation and history。。。[who] revels in detail but writes vast， moral poems that help us live in a world of contraries” by the Los Angeles Times。 In The Best American Poetry 2020， she has selected a fascinating array of work that speaks eloquently to the “contraries” of our present moment in time。

Download

Reviews

Alarie ，

There are some excellent poems in this anthology。 Excellence is what I expect from a collection of the best。 Unfortunately， poetry is highly subjective。 I usually find these collections a disappointment， leaning to poetry I consider too dry， too esoteric， and often way too long。 The one great exception for me was the 2017 edition， guest edited by Natasha Trethewey。 That I gave 5 stars。 My personal favorite poems in this collection:Victoria Chang: “Obit [Privacy–died]”Vieve Francis: “The Shore”Ra There are some excellent poems in this anthology。 Excellence is what I expect from a collection of the best。 Unfortunately， poetry is highly subjective。 I usually find these collections a disappointment， leaning to poetry I consider too dry， too esoteric， and often way too long。 The one great exception for me was the 2017 edition， guest edited by Natasha Trethewey。 That I gave 5 stars。 My personal favorite poems in this collection:Victoria Chang: “Obit [Privacy–died]”Vieve Francis: “The Shore”Rachel Eliza Griffiths: “Good Mother”Tony Hoagland: “Sunday at the Mall”Ilya Kaminsky: “In a Time of Peace”Steven Kleinman， “The Bear”Jennifer L。 Knox， “The Gift”Hieu Minh Nguyen: “The Chasm”Sharon Olds: “Hyacinth Aria”Clare Rossini: “The Keeper Will Enter the Cage”Craig Morgan Teicher: “I Am a Father Now”Matthew Zapruder: “My Life” 。。。more

Nathaniel ，

I hate "best of" collections and idk why I continue to read them。 They're way too subjective and I almost never agree with the choices made by the editors。 0/10 do not recommend。I skimmed the majority of the book。 The only two poems I enjoyed were Rachel Eliza Griffiths' "Good Mother" and Kevin Prufer's "Archaeology"。 I hate "best of" collections and idk why I continue to read them。 They're way too subjective and I almost never agree with the choices made by the editors。 0/10 do not recommend。I skimmed the majority of the book。 The only two poems I enjoyed were Rachel Eliza Griffiths' "Good Mother" and Kevin Prufer's "Archaeology"。 。。。more

Lisa M。 ，

After I learned about the flagrant nepotism in last year's edition， I was disappointed， but not shocked。 I have not read a lot of Rekdal's work but I have enjoyed what I read and looked forward to reading the anthology she curated。 I have discovered that while I may enjoy a writer， our tastes may not align。 While last year's collection was certainly navel-gazing， this doesn't have as much of that quality; but， I believe I enjoyed more of the poems in last year's collection。 Few in this book were After I learned about the flagrant nepotism in last year's edition， I was disappointed， but not shocked。 I have not read a lot of Rekdal's work but I have enjoyed what I read and looked forward to reading the anthology she curated。 I have discovered that while I may enjoy a writer， our tastes may not align。 While last year's collection was certainly navel-gazing， this doesn't have as much of that quality; but， I believe I enjoyed more of the poems in last year's collection。 Few in this book were really exciting for me。 When I ended the collection last year I could easily remember some of my favorites。 I don't necessarily feel the same way here。 Few of these poems truly stimulated me and I failed to see the appeal of many of them。 After reading these collections two years in a row I have found that my tastes don't align with them and I will no longer expect them too。 They are often full of poems of the status quo with a few experimental ones thrown in to make the editor/readers feel like the collection is cutting edge。 It's not。 The contemporary literature scene has so much more to offer than this。 So why read these？ It's a great way to learn about what is currently popular at the academic level， who is currently successful， and which markets lead to the most commercial success。 Beyond that surface information， it allows you to read new （sometimes） authors and think about why you did or didn't like a poem。 It's also really rare to read an accompanying piece in which the author shares their thoughts about the poem。 I don't necessarily like these books but it served its purpose and I'll keep reading them。 。。。more

Katie Karnehm-Esh ，

I sometimes struggled to get into this volume of poetry because so many of the poems were so long。 However， the payoff was that I read poems I often wouldn't read， and the poems I loved were particularly lovely。 Susan Leslie Moore's "Night of the Living"; Sharon Olds's "Hyacinth Aria"; Mehrnoosh Torbatnejad's "Isfahan， 2010"; Robert Wrigley's "Machinery" and Matthew Zapruder's "My Life" were some favorites。 I sometimes struggled to get into this volume of poetry because so many of the poems were so long。 However， the payoff was that I read poems I often wouldn't read， and the poems I loved were particularly lovely。 Susan Leslie Moore's "Night of the Living"; Sharon Olds's "Hyacinth Aria"; Mehrnoosh Torbatnejad's "Isfahan， 2010"; Robert Wrigley's "Machinery" and Matthew Zapruder's "My Life" were some favorites。 。。。more

Lisa Mooney ，

I always enjoy reading this yearly collection though I do not always agree with the guest editor about the particular poems being "the best"。 This year had fewer poems that I connected with than other years。Some stand out pieces for me were Good Mother by Rachel Eliza Griffiths， Isfahan， 2010 by Mehrnoosh Torbatnejad， Letter to the Person Who。。。。Advice by Matthew Olzmann， and The President's Telegram by John Yau。 I always enjoy reading this yearly collection though I do not always agree with the guest editor about the particular poems being "the best"。 This year had fewer poems that I connected with than other years。Some stand out pieces for me were Good Mother by Rachel Eliza Griffiths， Isfahan， 2010 by Mehrnoosh Torbatnejad， Letter to the Person Who。。。。Advice by Matthew Olzmann， and The President's Telegram by John Yau。 。。。more

Grace ，

This year’s collection of poems just wasn’t as impactful or interesting as years past。

Isabel ，

4 stars。A really diverse anthology of American poetry from a wide range of authors。 Found a lot of work here that I enjoyed。

Macy Woods ，

Read for Poetry Workshop

Natalie T。 ，

Rich， varied collection gives the opportunity to sample new poets and enjoy revisiting famous favorites--you get a lot of pleasure for a small investment。 As always， I wish there were more women represented--guest editor Paisley Rekdal pushes the number up to a little better than 1-in-3， so bless her for that， but here the times change slowly。 Her choices are daring and resonant， though， so you will spend more time reading than you think: you read a poet you never heard of， get blown away， and t Rich， varied collection gives the opportunity to sample new poets and enjoy revisiting famous favorites--you get a lot of pleasure for a small investment。 As always， I wish there were more women represented--guest editor Paisley Rekdal pushes the number up to a little better than 1-in-3， so bless her for that， but here the times change slowly。 Her choices are daring and resonant， though， so you will spend more time reading than you think: you read a poet you never heard of， get blown away， and then read a few more， and feel your day cleansed and your life enhanced。 Special mention to John Murillo's astonishing sonnet sequence， "A Refusal to Mourn the Deaths， by Gunfire， of Three Men in Brooklyn"--wow！--and to Rachel Eliza Griffiths' "Good Mother，" which is perfection， and to Camille Guthrie's fabulously imaginative "During the Middle Ages，" and Craig Morgan Teicher's "I Am a Father Now，" and Matthew Olzmann's "Letter to the Person Who， During the Q&A Session After the Reading， Asked for Career Advice。" These were all new poets to me， and I went instantly in search of their books: they're that good。 。。。more

Michelle ，

Collections like this are wonderful mix of voices and styles。 For me， they lead to a mixed reading experience。Quotes （not formatted）"。。。the fellowship between people that occurs in language。" （xxxiii）"。。。the pause a kind of gap between what she knew an what the words could do。" （Rick Barot， 8）"。。。where time widens to include more of itself。" "I light my heart with so much emptiness there's room here in the dark for everything。""Some days I know the strongest feeling is grief but I believe it mus Collections like this are wonderful mix of voices and styles。 For me， they lead to a mixed reading experience。Quotes （not formatted）"。。。the fellowship between people that occurs in language。" （xxxiii）"。。。the pause a kind of gap between what she knew an what the words could do。" （Rick Barot， 8）"。。。where time widens to include more of itself。" "I light my heart with so much emptiness there's room here in the dark for everything。""Some days I know the strongest feeling is grief but I believe it must be love: it has to be， has to be， hast to。 Some days I feel each cell in my body has its fingers crossed"（Timothy Donnelly， 32-4） "。。。when I stood before a storm of scalding water that would have killed me if I gave it the mistake I looked for。" （Christine Gosnay， 52）"。。。on a night as tender as a weed-whacker grinding into the withered earth。" （BC Griffith， 65）"。。。does it help I only wanted so I could have the need？" （Paul Otremba， 134）"。。。the stranger and I danced at the party by the water， expecting what we desired。" （Cecily Parks， 136）"。。。as the carnal exorbitance of fucking evolved over millennia to the restraint， exquisite， of a kiss。" （Clare Rossini， 157）"People never shock me， but I love to be taken by surprise by loyalty and candor。" （Robyn Schiff， 161） 。。。more

Harris ，

I don't expect much from poetry anthologies。 It can be exciting that the next page will have something really striking that I enjoy。 This happened a few times， but it didn't exceed 6 poems in total。 I'm new to poetry so I was also looking for poets I may to read more of。 Luckily I found one。 I don't expect much from poetry anthologies。 It can be exciting that the next page will have something really striking that I enjoy。 This happened a few times， but it didn't exceed 6 poems in total。 I'm new to poetry so I was also looking for poets I may to read more of。 Luckily I found one。 。。。more

Moranda ，

Loved this collection。 A lot of longer poems like people said but I didn’t mind。 The poems touched on a lot of cultural， societal， political， and social issues in meaningful and interesting ways。 Of course， I didn’t love every poem but that’s not quite the point of these collections regardless。 I feel this was an adept overview of American poetry in 2020。 It certainly covered what it was meant to cover。 Notable Stand outs:All Through the War - Timothy Donnelly To X - Julian GewirtzSex - Christin Loved this collection。 A lot of longer poems like people said but I didn’t mind。 The poems touched on a lot of cultural， societal， political， and social issues in meaningful and interesting ways。 Of course， I didn’t love every poem but that’s not quite the point of these collections regardless。 I feel this was an adept overview of American poetry in 2020。 It certainly covered what it was meant to cover。 Notable Stand outs:All Through the War - Timothy Donnelly To X - Julian GewirtzSex - Christine GosnayThe Conversion of Paul - Jennifer GrotzDuring the Middle Ages - Camille GuthrieThe Garden of Earthly Delights - Troy JollimoreIn A Time of Peace - Ilya KaminskyRecessional - Corey Van Landingham 。。。more

Matheus Silva ，

This is more than a poetry book。 It’s a reflection of what the US currently is， so you’ll not like it if you expect bucolic rhymes。 You’re in for a treat if you enjoy long poems。My personal favorites （in order of appearance）:- “Costumer Loyalty Program” by Brandon Amico- “Orange” by William Brewer- “Obit” by Victoria Chang- “The Shore” by Vievee Francis- “It cannot be” by Jorie Graham- “During the Middle Ages” by Camille Guthrie- “The Gift” by Jennifer L。 Knox- “Night of the Living” by Susan Les This is more than a poetry book。 It’s a reflection of what the US currently is， so you’ll not like it if you expect bucolic rhymes。 You’re in for a treat if you enjoy long poems。My personal favorites （in order of appearance）:- “Costumer Loyalty Program” by Brandon Amico- “Orange” by William Brewer- “Obit” by Victoria Chang- “The Shore” by Vievee Francis- “It cannot be” by Jorie Graham- “During the Middle Ages” by Camille Guthrie- “The Gift” by Jennifer L。 Knox- “Night of the Living” by Susan Leslie Moore- “Chasm” by Huey Minh Nguyen- “Letter to the Person Who， During the Q&A Session After the Reading， Asked for Career Advice” by Matthew Olzmann- “The Poorly Built House” by Max Ritvo- “The Prayer” by James Tate- “Machinery” by Robert Wrigley- “My Life” by Matthew Zapruder 。。。more

Trina ，

I'm not a fan of the long poem， especially in digital format。 It seemed like at least 85% of these meandered on and on and tried to be both epic and topical， but I just didn't have the patience to engage with this collection right now。 I'm not a fan of the long poem， especially in digital format。 It seemed like at least 85% of these meandered on and on and tried to be both epic and topical， but I just didn't have the patience to engage with this collection right now。 。。。more

Evanne Lindley ，

Of the BAP collections I’ve read， this one felt the most comprehensive while not focusing on any one topic。 This year’s guest editor， Paisley Rekdal， wrote in her introduction that she aim was to choose poems that brought her pleasure。 I appreciated that endeavor as a reader even if how each poem met those requirements for her wasn’t always clear。 One thing for sure， Rekdal likes a poem about a painting。 There were at least 3 or 4。 （“The Stag” made so much more sense after looking up the paintin Of the BAP collections I’ve read， this one felt the most comprehensive while not focusing on any one topic。 This year’s guest editor， Paisley Rekdal， wrote in her introduction that she aim was to choose poems that brought her pleasure。 I appreciated that endeavor as a reader even if how each poem met those requirements for her wasn’t always clear。 One thing for sure， Rekdal likes a poem about a painting。 There were at least 3 or 4。 （“The Stag” made so much more sense after looking up the painting。）I recommend reading the notes at the back from each author directly before or after reading each poem。 Since you’re jumping from poet to poet， it can be a bit jarring to jump between styles and topics but the added context from the poet helps， especially poems like “Study of Two Figures （Pasiphae/Sado）” where the author’s notes give you the mythical and historical context behind the two figures。My favorites:The GalleonsAll Through the WarOn Patmos， Kneeling in the Panagia Good MotherPutting the Pieces TogetherSunday at the MallBearChasmLetter to the Person Who， During the Q&A Session After the Reading， Asked for Career AdviceI Am a Father NowThe StagIsfahan， 2010MachineryStudy of Two Figures （Pasiphae/Sado） 。。。more

Cornelio ，

This year’s annual collection， edited by a poet I love， Paisley Rekdal， touched on many feelings， aesthetics， and hard thoughts in voices of many styles: the lyrical， the rhythmic， the poignant， the confessor， the angry， the solemn， the political， the personal， the straight up howl， the damn the ‘poetics’， sometimes all in one poem。 And begs re-reads to mine even more。‘Out loud wetarea silence， isn’tttit thoughtconglomeratepurpose， the oldheadconsideringttwhat to say;ought onettbettboundto it—tt This year’s annual collection， edited by a poet I love， Paisley Rekdal， touched on many feelings， aesthetics， and hard thoughts in voices of many styles: the lyrical， the rhythmic， the poignant， the confessor， the angry， the solemn， the political， the personal， the straight up howl， the damn the ‘poetics’， sometimes all in one poem。 And begs re-reads to mine even more。‘Out loud wetarea silence， isn’tttit thoughtconglomeratepurpose， the oldheadconsideringttwhat to say;ought onettbettboundto it—ttbut I can’tbe thinkinglike this I aminsteadttreading，amtryingttto readagainstttthis thoughtof what to say…-excerpt from“Reading Not Reading”Ryo Yamaguchifor live reading: https://youtu。be/5xN4YycrRJo 。。。more

Isla McKetta ，

This collection encouraged me to write longer poems， to explore more deeply the relationships between fragments I've created。 This collection encouraged me to write longer poems， to explore more deeply the relationships between fragments I've created。 。。。more

Scott ，

Overall impressions: a narrow selection among magazines， Copper Nickel and Poetry dominant among them; a strong presence of writers of color， but other orthodoxies inform much of the work， the experimentation mild in character， characteristic of the academic/MFA bubble， the subject matter semi-confessional， the politics vaguely liberal in the vein of "human rights" discourse。 I've never thought the Lehman anthology ever really represented "the best，" being more the product of a mild cronyism， pe Overall impressions: a narrow selection among magazines， Copper Nickel and Poetry dominant among them; a strong presence of writers of color， but other orthodoxies inform much of the work， the experimentation mild in character， characteristic of the academic/MFA bubble， the subject matter semi-confessional， the politics vaguely liberal in the vein of "human rights" discourse。 I've never thought the Lehman anthology ever really represented "the best，" being more the product of a mild cronyism， perhaps inevitable in such a crowded and professionalized field; but also， in this instance， some fine work by Timothy Donnelly， Arthur Sze， Ariana Reines， posthumous Lucie Brock-Broido， among others。 No better but no worse than most of these anthologies。 At least the guest editor didn't publish herself and members of her immediate family。 。。。more

Diane ，

I love poetry but I think it's poetry "anthologies" that I have trouble with。 This collection is hard to rate because some of the poems were outstanding （looking at you Zapruder！） and others were just odd， show-offy， experimental poems。 I think I'll stick to collections by my favorites （Donald Hall， Jane Kenyon， Billy Collins， Mary Oliver， William Matthews， Sharon Olds etc。） I'll leave these curated collections off of my "must read" list。 I love poetry but I think it's poetry "anthologies" that I have trouble with。 This collection is hard to rate because some of the poems were outstanding （looking at you Zapruder！） and others were just odd， show-offy， experimental poems。 I think I'll stick to collections by my favorites （Donald Hall， Jane Kenyon， Billy Collins， Mary Oliver， William Matthews， Sharon Olds etc。） I'll leave these curated collections off of my "must read" list。 。。。more

Ashley Mares ，

I look forward to this collection every year and it never disappoints。

Erin ，

Rekdal likes the long poem。 That's clear。 My absolute favorites:Monica Youn "Study of Two Figures （Pasiphae/Sado）"Ilya Kaminsky "In a Time of Piece"Kevin Prufer "Archeology"Some other favorites:William Brewer "Orange"Victoria Chang "Obit [Privacy--died]"Timothy Donnelly "All Through the War"Rachel Eliza Griffiths "Good Mother"Donika Kelly "I Never Figured How to Get Free"Christopher Kempf "After"Jennifer L。 Knox "The Gift"Sharon Olds "Hyacinth Aria"Carl Phillips "Something to Believe in"Clare Ro Rekdal likes the long poem。 That's clear。 My absolute favorites:Monica Youn "Study of Two Figures （Pasiphae/Sado）"Ilya Kaminsky "In a Time of Piece"Kevin Prufer "Archeology"Some other favorites:William Brewer "Orange"Victoria Chang "Obit [Privacy--died]"Timothy Donnelly "All Through the War"Rachel Eliza Griffiths "Good Mother"Donika Kelly "I Never Figured How to Get Free"Christopher Kempf "After"Jennifer L。 Knox "The Gift"Sharon Olds "Hyacinth Aria"Carl Phillips "Something to Believe in"Clare Rossini "The Keeper Will Enter the Cage"James Tate "The Prayer"Matthew Thorburn "The Stag"Mehrnoosh Torbatnejad "Isfahan， 2010"John Yau "The President's Telegram" 。。。more

Bill ，

Any collection of poetry by different authors will of course mean that the individual poem will vary in their impact on the reader， especially with poetry being such a subjective experience。 I’m always satisfied if half the selections in such a work move me in some way， by image， language， sound， etc。 I’ve had mixed experience with the Best American Poetry series， but this year’s （2020） is one of the best I’ve read， with only a small handful of poems falling into the “didn’t care for” category。 Any collection of poetry by different authors will of course mean that the individual poem will vary in their impact on the reader， especially with poetry being such a subjective experience。 I’m always satisfied if half the selections in such a work move me in some way， by image， language， sound， etc。 I’ve had mixed experience with the Best American Poetry series， but this year’s （2020） is one of the best I’ve read， with only a small handful of poems falling into the “didn’t care for” category。 Really a stellar collection。My favorite may be the excerpt from Rick Barot’s The Galleons， a multi—stranded poem that moves back and forth in speakers and time， exploring his family’s immigration against a broader scale of historic imperialism and colonialism。 The excerpt so captured me that immediately went out and bought the book after reading the excerpts closing lines: “a building like a tallness of heart a dream carried into waking my life breathing before it incredible and true。” Another favorite is “A Man Drops a Coat on the Sidewalk and Almost Falls into the Arms of Another”， where Reginald Dwayne Betts spins out a caught moment in time into a wonderful meditation。 Painfully powerful is Ryan Black’s “Nothing Beats a Fair”， which begins with the speaker telling how his mother worked as a waitress at the 1964 World Fair and ends with a horrific moment of racism at a hockey game， when his “mother stepped back， then seemed to harden like the women in those stories， in D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths， who were transformed because they would not give consent。” Even more powerful over its entire length is Julian Gewirtz’s “To X （Written on this Device You Made）”， a poem addressed to the “24-year-old migrant worker” noted in the epigraph from the Washington Post who “jumped out of a window of a dormitory run by his employer， Foxconn 。 。 。 that makes the majority of the world’s Apple iPhones。” The chorus throughout of “another net” going up （to catch the number of suicide attempts） is chilling， while the last line is an utter knockout blow。As noted， there were a few poems I didn’t much like， but the number was shockingly low。 Generally， this collection had fewer of the poems I consider more word games than anything else， and many more that dealt ringing emotional blows as well as showing a deft hand at subtle rhymes， sound technique， and imagery。 Highly recommended。 。。。more

Alicia Bayer ，

Hmmm。 Anthologies like this strike me as the main reason so many Americans say they don't like poetry。 Can we please get to a place where our options aren't either self-absorbed， generic Instagram poetry or this？ While I did enjoy a few of the poems， so many were the literary equivalent of the art display where someone paints something entirely with pieces of used condoms。 Give me Margaret Atwood， Nikky Finney， Langston Hughes。。。 poets who can say something artistically and beautifully， make you Hmmm。 Anthologies like this strike me as the main reason so many Americans say they don't like poetry。 Can we please get to a place where our options aren't either self-absorbed， generic Instagram poetry or this？ While I did enjoy a few of the poems， so many were the literary equivalent of the art display where someone paints something entirely with pieces of used condoms。 Give me Margaret Atwood， Nikky Finney， Langston Hughes。。。 poets who can say something artistically and beautifully， make you feel， and not leave you feeling like you're either not smart enough or high enough to know what on earth the poet is saying。 I love poetry but I couldn't finish this anthology， as reading most of the poems （which often run on for many pages） felt like the worst kind of college homework: intellectual calisthenics and drudgery。 I remember reading the "best" poetry journals when I was an English lit major and young poet many years ago and lamenting that this was the sort of stuff that was favored。 I'm discouraged that this many years later， this is still the stuff that the poetry elite fawn over。All that said， if you tend to like the Best American Poetry anthologies， this particular year is as good as any and there seems to be a good amount of diversity。I read a digital ARC of this book via Net Galley。 。。。more

Ace Boggess ，

A strong selection of poems in this year's edition。 Guest Editor Paisley Rekdal learned much more toward toward the longer poems， making this edition more reminiscent of that from 2004。 As such， I didn't connect with as many of the poems as I'd like。 Unlike with that 2004 volume however， here I recognized the excellence of almost every piece， even those I didn't love by the end。 It's a worthy edition to the series and quite fulfilling to read。 Worth the money。 A strong selection of poems in this year's edition。 Guest Editor Paisley Rekdal learned much more toward toward the longer poems， making this edition more reminiscent of that from 2004。 As such， I didn't connect with as many of the poems as I'd like。 Unlike with that 2004 volume however， here I recognized the excellence of almost every piece， even those I didn't love by the end。 It's a worthy edition to the series and quite fulfilling to read。 Worth the money。 。。。more

Lori ，

About all I want to say about this book is that if this is the best American poetry offers， I'll be reading British poetry or older poetry from now on。 Very few poems instilled a sense of calmness and peace。 Few dealt with themes of beauty， peacefulness， the sea， flowers， birds， etc。 Too much of the content was stressful， and to call some of it poetry stretches the definition。 I received an advance review copy through Edelweiss。 While the publisher appreciates reviews， they are not required。 About all I want to say about this book is that if this is the best American poetry offers， I'll be reading British poetry or older poetry from now on。 Very few poems instilled a sense of calmness and peace。 Few dealt with themes of beauty， peacefulness， the sea， flowers， birds， etc。 Too much of the content was stressful， and to call some of it poetry stretches the definition。 I received an advance review copy through Edelweiss。 While the publisher appreciates reviews， they are not required。 。。。more

J。D。 DeHart ，

As editor David Lehman rightly points out， these troubled times are ripe for poetic reflection。 Poetry is a place of language play， exploration of lived experience， and personal healing。 As always， the poems collected in this volume refresh。

Jenn Adams ，

When it comes to a collection like this， coming up with one overarching rating can be a challenge。 At the end of the day， I can evaluate this from two different perspectives: how much did I personally enjoy this vs。 how "good" it was at doing what it set out to do。 The Best American Poetry is released annually with a different guest editor each year。 In the introduction to this anthology， Paisley Rekdal addresses the hows and whys of the curation process， and I think that this was very well done When it comes to a collection like this， coming up with one overarching rating can be a challenge。 At the end of the day， I can evaluate this from two different perspectives: how much did I personally enjoy this vs。 how "good" it was at doing what it set out to do。 The Best American Poetry is released annually with a different guest editor each year。 In the introduction to this anthology， Paisley Rekdal addresses the hows and whys of the curation process， and I think that this was very well done。 There was quite an assortment of styles a content - topical issues were addressed in some poems， others were timeless。 An experienced poetry reader may read this to keep up with the current 'scene'， but a beginner could easily use this as a sampler to find out whose work to explore。5 for quality， 3 for personal enjoyment， just because I don't read a lot of poetry and I'm picky about what I like （keeping in mind that for me that's still a GOOD rating）。 I would definitely check out next year's edition if it comes across my path。Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more

Keeley ，

Long live poetry！ As a poor struggling poet myself， I don't often get to read all the literary journals throughout the year and am somewhat out of touch with contemporary poetry。 This annual compendium gives me great relief as evidence that poetry is alive and well。 While the selected poems often feel similar in form， there is a good variety of content and you are sure to find a gem you love。 I especially enjoyed Camille Guthrie's "During the Middle Ages" （"Some local doctor would have to drill Long live poetry！ As a poor struggling poet myself， I don't often get to read all the literary journals throughout the year and am somewhat out of touch with contemporary poetry。 This annual compendium gives me great relief as evidence that poetry is alive and well。 While the selected poems often feel similar in form， there is a good variety of content and you are sure to find a gem you love。 I especially enjoyed Camille Guthrie's "During the Middle Ages" （"Some local doctor would have to drill a hole in/ my head/ To let the demons out because I'd be full/ Of Black bile plus heresy as I am today"） and am excited to check out her other work。Thanks to the publisher for the review copy。 。。。more

Amie ，

The Best American Poetry 2020 skews more toward the academic reader with an extensive forward and introduction。 The poetry collection includes works by dozens of accomplished and notable poets that are quintessentially American in their diversity。 It is not a work meant for the casual poetry lover。 Rather， it is a collection for those who love to dig deep into themes， styles， and symbols within the text。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Best American Poetry 2020

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Best American Poetry 2020&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Best American Poetry 2020&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0