Selected Poems and Prose

Selected Poems and Prose

Summary

The selected poems and prose writings of Edward Thomas, with a Foreword from Robert Macfarlane, author of The Old Ways

'I have come to the borders of sleep,
The unfathomable deep
Forest where all must lose
Their way, however straight,
Or winding, soon or late;
They cannot choose.'


Fired by his abiding love of the English landscape, the poetry of Edward Thomas is some of the most astonishing of the twentieth century. A journalist, essayist and critic for many years, he was encouraged to write verse by his friend Robert Frost. He produced a late outburst of poetry of extraordinary beauty and mystery about the subjects closest to his heart: rural England and its inhabitants, landscape, atmosphere, transience, endurance and death. By 1917, when he was killed on the Western Front, he had earned his place as one of England's most valued poets. This selection brings together his finest verse with his most vivid prose writings on the countryside.

'The father of us all' Ted Hughes

Edited by David Wright
With a Foreword by Robert Macfarlane, taken from The Old Ways

Reviews

  • The father of us all
    Ted Hughes

About the author

Edward Thomas

Edward Thomas (1878-1917) was an English poet, journalist and essayist. He made his living writing prose for many years, until he was encouraged to compose verse by the American poet Robert Frost. This led to a prolific outburst of extraordinary poetry, which was brought to a tragic end when Thomas was killed in the First World War.
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