First Four Books of Poems

by Louise Glück

Book Overview

Winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature

The First Four Books of Poems collects the early work that established Louise Gluck as one of America's most original and important poets.

Honored with the Pulitzer Prize for The Wild Iris, Gluck was celebrated early in her career for her fierce, austerely beautiful voice. In Firstborn, The House on Marshland, Descending Figure, and The Triumph of Achilles,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0880014776
• ISBN13: 9780880014779
• Release Date: August 1999
• Publisher: Ecco Press
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

Early Gluck

This volume collects Louise Gluck's first four books: Firstborn (1968), The House on Marshland (1975), Descending Figure (1980), and The Triumph of Achilles (1985). If you're not familiar with Gluck, you're in for a wild ride. Her poems stare darkness in the face. They're unflinching. Consider, for example, the opening lines of "The Drowned Children," the opening poem from Descending Figure: "You see, they have no judgment. / So it is natural that they should drown, / first the ice taking them in / and then, all winter, their wool scarves / floating behind them as they sink / until at last they are quiet. / And the pond lifts them in its manifold dark arms."

Evolution of the contemporary woman

Self-expression is perhaps the only cure for the great social gag that once bound women's creativity. Female poets are essentially empowering themselves through language; society no longer expects them to be simply silent and useful. In particular, Louise Gluck deals with many of the issues facing the contemporary woman as an individual. Her work addresses the feminine identity as it relates to independence and personal fulfillment. The stark simplicity of her language underscores the depth and complexity of her subjects with a sense of tight control. Her writing is constantly evolving; the poems as a body of work are as meaningful when taken together as each is standing alone. Beginning with tentative exploration in her early work -marked by themes of loss and emptiness - Gluck's poetry moves towards a denouement of fierce self-actualization, just as in modern culture women make their way towards triumphant fulfillment. In this collection of her first four books, one may see the movement of a voice from submissive flesh forward into exclamatory liberation.

A Beautiful, Elegant Work of Art

I bought this book for my intermediate poetry class, and although I have not yet finished reading through all of it, I have placed it high on my list of favorites. Each of Gluck's poems is something to be savored - you can feel the words on your tongue, and the pictures she provides are so real that you almost wish her memories and images were your own. Only Gluck can describe something as heart-wrenching as a fickle lover as waspishly and deliciously as she does, ending that particular poem with the words "You pimp." Nor can the reader ignore her own delicate, luminous poem "The Nativity", which expresses her own thoughts on the birth of Christ. The majority of Gluck's poetry is short and the lines simple; however, the images triggered by the words and what she means to convey is of a far greater volume. As you read through this fantastic collection, you'll find that many of Gluck's images, ideas, glories and frustrations are those of every person. The way she expresses herself leaves you bowed over at each poem's end, and you always want to read ahead to see what else she will present you with. These poems are Gluck's gift to the world, and the poetry unfolds before the reader as serenly as a flower unfolds to the sun. So check it out, you might really enjoy and be uplifted by what you read!

The First Four Books=Four Aces

The first four books undoubtedly comes from her relatively early period.However,they are all works of a born-poetess.Original,gripping,challenging and elegant.Very elegant...

Excellent, won the Pulitzer for a reason!

Gluck has a wonderful control of mood and language, and she shows it off here. The poems as a whole come together to tell the beautiful story in three voices, and the book needs to be read in one sitting. Then read again. Then read again. Easily one of the best collections of poetry this decade.