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abbeyjfox's review against another edition
4.0
favorites:
"knee song"
"us"
"now"
"the ballad of a the lonely masturbator"
"just once"
and of course,
"for my lover, returning to his wife"
"knee song"
"us"
"now"
"the ballad of a the lonely masturbator"
"just once"
and of course,
"for my lover, returning to his wife"
jasbeingjas's review against another edition
4.0
The forward for this collection was really good to help explain the context and history of this collection of poems. I usually skim a foreword but I’ve found it helpful when reading poetry and this one in particular was concise and informative. The poems themselves were interesting. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the collection
octavia_cade's review against another edition
4.0
A series of poems, linked together almost as a story, about the beginning (and ultimately the ending) of an adulterous relationship. The language is sensual and lovely, almost mesmeric, but the very long poem at the end, as the protagonist counts the days since the end of the affair, did jog me out of it a little - I suppose that's almost the point, the jarring end to romance, the opening up again of a world that is suddenly less narrowly focused than it was, but I didn't particularly enjoy the jarring. There are some beautiful poems in here though, and it's hard to pick favourites. "The Breast", "The Nude Swim", "For My Lover, Returning to His Wife" and "It Is a Spring Afternoon" were all excellent. Top place, though, has to go I think to the fantastically named "The Ballad of the Lonely Masturbator".
levitybooks's review against another edition
5.0
I love Love Poems, but I'm surprised that almost no reviewers here have mentioned 'That Day'.
To me, 'That Day', stands out as the clearest written expression of female sensuality I've ever seen. If you're interested in this book, find 'That Day'.
It's one of few times where something I've read has internally displaced me so far that it calls for me to 'gather myself' for a few minutes after reading—it was so vivid, believable and succinct.
To me, 'That Day', stands out as the clearest written expression of female sensuality I've ever seen. If you're interested in this book, find 'That Day'.
It's one of few times where something I've read has internally displaced me so far that it calls for me to 'gather myself' for a few minutes after reading—it was so vivid, believable and succinct.
jonathanwlodarski's review against another edition
4.0
Highlights: "The Kiss", "The Breast", "For My Lover, Returning to His Wife", "Moon Song, Woman Song", "Song for a Lady"
4/5
4/5
asensualcow's review against another edition
4.0
“It was fat and soft and blind in places.
Nothing but vulnerable.
And all this is metaphor.
An ordinary hand - just lonely
for something to touch
that touches it back."
Nothing but vulnerable.
And all this is metaphor.
An ordinary hand - just lonely
for something to touch
that touches it back."
jaymoran's review against another edition
4.0
My least favourite of Sexton's thus far, Love Poems is still a strong and great collection with rich flares of her brilliance. It was just a shame that a few of these poems didn't quite hit home for me but whenever they did, it was superb.
sayruh90's review against another edition
4.0
The only collection of “love” poems I’ve read that mention Nazis, hysterectomies, masturbation, Pearl Harbor, mistresses, and mental hospitals. Refreshing!
Highlights:
“In Celebration of My Uterus”
“The Nude Swim”
“Again And Again And Again”
Highlights:
“In Celebration of My Uterus”
“The Nude Swim”
“Again And Again And Again”
littlelovedbooks's review against another edition
2.0
2.5
I fully understand that this is Anne Sexton the legend and that she won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry but this just did not do it for me. II picked this up at the thrift store and I probably never would have read it anyway but it was short so I gave it a shot and I really had a hard time getting through it.
It was really gritty but overly so, kind of a dark love poetry I guess, but had long bumbling metaphors that I didn't connect with and didnt make much sense at all.
As a result, this 67 page book took me almost three days to wade through, and even then I skipped some of the longer poems that I just couldn't understand.
HOWEVER: I did like 3 of the poems - "The Nude Swim" , "For My Lover, Returning to His Wife" , and "Mr. Mine"
Sadly, most likely clearing this one out of my library.
I fully understand that this is Anne Sexton the legend and that she won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry but this just did not do it for me. II picked this up at the thrift store and I probably never would have read it anyway but it was short so I gave it a shot and I really had a hard time getting through it.
It was really gritty but overly so, kind of a dark love poetry I guess, but had long bumbling metaphors that I didn't connect with and didnt make much sense at all.
As a result, this 67 page book took me almost three days to wade through, and even then I skipped some of the longer poems that I just couldn't understand.
HOWEVER: I did like 3 of the poems - "The Nude Swim" , "For My Lover, Returning to His Wife" , and "Mr. Mine"
Sadly, most likely clearing this one out of my library.
bowierowie's review against another edition
3.0
I just could not get into this collection as much as "Live or Die" no matter how much I wanted to. Perhaps some of the poems are too ethereal for me? I'm not exactly sure what it is, but I found myself dozing off while reading some of them, while others jolted me out of my seat their use of language was so powerful and evocative. My favorites from this collection are: "The Touch", "The Breast", "That Day", "In Celebration of My Uterus", "For My Lover, Returning to His Wife", "The Break" (A bird full of bones, now I'm held by a sand bag. / The fracture was twice. The fracture was double. / The days are horizontal. The days are a drag. / All of the skeleton in me is in trouble.), "Just Once", "You All Know the Story of the Other Woman", "The Ballad of the Lonely Masturbator", "Mr. Mine", "Song for a Lady", "Eighteen Days Without You: December 16th".