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A review by jeffhall
A Shropshire Lad by A.E. Housman
4.0
This is a classic collection of poems, with the individual verses functioning as standalone pieces that also take on an almost narrative shape if read in order. Some of the themes are quite dark, but Housman manages to achieve great poetic effects even when writing about suicide, such as in poem XLV:
If it chance your eye offend you,
Pluck it out, lad, and be sound:
'Twill hurt, but here are salves to friend you,
And many a balsam grows on ground.
And if your hand or foot offend you,
Cut it off, lad, and be whole:
But play the man, stand up and end you.
When your sickness is your soul.
If it chance your eye offend you,
Pluck it out, lad, and be sound:
'Twill hurt, but here are salves to friend you,
And many a balsam grows on ground.
And if your hand or foot offend you,
Cut it off, lad, and be whole:
But play the man, stand up and end you.
When your sickness is your soul.