Contemporary American Poetry

This highly respected anthology presents the works of 71 poets who have shaped the contours and direction of mainstream American poetry from 1960 to the present. Designed to provide a rich reading experience for both undergrad and graduate courses, more than 500 selections illustrate the variety and vitality of American poetry over the last few decades. For each poet, the collection features a generous sampling of their work along with a photo, biographical sketches, and bibliographies. New! The anthology includes the poetry of seven new writers (Billy Collins, Stephen Dunn, Louise Erdrich, Michael Palmer, Dave Smith, Jean Valentine, and C.D. Wright) as well as that of two popular, previously featured writers (Mary Oliver and Theodore Roethke). New! New selections from poets in the previous edition, several of which have not yet published elsewhere, appear throughout the book to engage students with the most current poetic work. The anthology is alphabetically organized by poet to avoid ranking or pigeon-holing writers into schools or literary movements.