This is an excellent collection of Tennyson's poems,
very representative, very inclusive. In order to make
room for so many poems with full texts, the editor has
chosen not to include an Introduction. This, of course,
for the non-Tennyson reader or person wishing to know
more about him presents something of an obstacle. However,
a bit of rambling to one's own library, or a municipal
one, can solve that.
There is included a Chronology of important dates and
events concerning Tennyson's life. From this, a few of
the important facts seem to be: 1809--born at Somersby,
fourth son of Revd George Clayton Tennyson, Rector of
Somersby; 1816-1820--pupil at Louth Grammar School,
subsequently educated at home by his father; 1827--
publishes _Poems by Two Brothers_ with his brother
Charles, also enters Trinity College, Cambridge University;
1829--meets Arthur Henry Hallam, also a student at Trinity,
who was to become Tennyson's close friend and the fiance
of Tennyson's sister Emily, also wins the Chancellor's
Gold Medal with his prize poem "Timbuctoo", and becomes
a member of the "Apostles," a Cambridge debating society;
1830--publication of _Poems, Chiefly Lyrical_; 1831--death
of Tennyson's father, he leaves Cambridge without a
degree; 1833 (September) death of Hallam, his close
friend, from a cerebral hemorrhage while on holiday in
Vienna; 1840--beginning of almost a decade of depression
and ill health for Tennyson; 1850--marries Emily
Sellwood, appointed Poet Laureate of England; 1852--birth
of first son whom he names "Hallam"; 1883--accepts offer
of title of Baron, taking his seat in the House of
Lords in March 1884; 1892--dies on 6 October.
The poems in this anthology come from the major
publishings of Tennyson's poems. The first two:
"Timbuctoo" was published in the _Cambridge Chronicle
and Journal_ (1829) --and "The Idealist" was not
published during Tennyson's lifetime [this information

comes from the very good notes supplied by the Editor
Aidan Day at the back of the volume].
The poems included in this volume which the scholar or
general reader might wish to know are here collected
in one edition [full texts], along with many more
than these mentioned, are: The Lady of Shalott; Oenone;
The Palace of Art; The Hesperides; The Lotos-Eaters;
Morte d'Arthur; Ulysses; Locksley Hall; short poems
from _The Princess_; IN MEMORIAM, A.H.H. (1850);
MAUD (1855); Ode on the Death of the Duke of Wellington;
The Charge of the Light Brigade; Tithonous; Lucretius;
To E. FitzGerald; Tiresias; The Ancient Sage; Locksley
Hall Sixty Years After (1886); Demeter and Persephone;
Crossing the Bar. These poems are presented in
chronological order in the text, and the very good
Table of Contents in the front of the book tells
the poetry collection and its date from which the
poems come.
Tennyson is one of those interesting poets that take
a bit of time (at least for me) to get used to -- to
want to read, to really listen to. Having had the
experience of being required to memorize some of
Tennyson for my early academic training in school
at least got me acquainted with the more accessible,
but somewhat less deep poems. But it has taken several
years, much experience, and depressed grief over the
loss of a beloved, to bring me into synch with
the deeper poetry...or at least, being able to hear
it with deeper understanding, deeper reading.
From these poems it is hard to pick "favorites," and
that almost seems too trite a word. Maybe "meaningful"
would be more appropriate as a term. The two I would
select out would be "The Palace of Art" (1832; rev.
1842) and IN MEMORIAM, A.H.H. (1833), on the death
of his dear, beloved friend Arthur Hallam.
From "The Palace of Art," these lines resonate:
* * * * * * * * *
And with choice paintings of wise men I hung
The royal dais round.

For there was Milton like a seraph strong,
Beside him Shakespeare bland and mild;
And there the world-worn Dante grasp'd his song,
And somewhat grimly smiled.

And there the Ionian father of the rest;
A million wrinkles carved his skin;
A hundred winters snow'd upon his breast,
From cheek and throat and chin.
......
And thro' the topmost Oriels' coloured flame
Two godlike faces gazed below;
Plato the wise, and large-brow'd Verulam,
The first of those who know.

-- Arthur Lord Tennyson.
* * * * * * * *

This is an eminently readable collection of Tennyson's most memorable poems. Both the price and the content are of great value to today's readers. Our present times reflect stress and change which parrallels Tennyson's world. The poems are timeless and language is no barrier for a new millenium reader of this valient poet. For those looking for guidlines to courage and consistency, I recommend that you read and enjoy this book. Your gain will be ten-fold the price.

Uncompromisingly academic, this short but in-depth study of the notions of identity in Bob Dylan's lyrics would probably be inaccessible for anyone not in possession of an Eng Lit degree. A must for anyone with said degree and a Dylan collection.

I was involved in a threesome of my own: this book, the Sandman and myself. The Sandman had to wait on me because I was up until 4:00 AM finishing this fast-paced, sexually charged novel titled Threesome: Where Seduction, Power and Basketball Collide.

Meet Sasha, a thirty-something modern woman, who finds herself in one of the most unthinkable situations and then proceeds to let her life spin completely out of control. Men, money, and self-destructive behavior aids in her hurricane funnel and one could never predict where it would touch down. Walking through Sasha's life as an observer, I found myself talking to her the whole time, but she never listened.

Brenda L Thomas tells a fascinating tale of a woman who struggles through life making poor choices that have heartbreaking consequences in this 138 pg. novel. This book grabbed my attention from the beginning and didn't let go until she was through with me. I appreciated the narrative of different points of views and the tact that was used in racy sex scenes. This was a quick and easy read. My only disappointment came at the end, whereas a reader, I recognized it couldn't have possibly ended any other way but I still wanted something more. This book may not be for everyone because of the sexual content. If you don't mind that then you will enjoy this.

Kotanya
APOOO Bookclub

When Brenda L. Thomas read the prologue to Threesome at an afternoon Montsho Booksigning, I knew I had to buy the book to finish the story...and I did that very night! This is an exciting, easy-to-read, page-turner that anyone can enjoy.

The story is largely narrated by Sasha Bourianni, an attractive 38 year-old executive secretary whose affair with a married man triggers a series of events that sends her life into a whirlwind that includes a career change (a personal assistant to an NBA star), relationship issues with her employer, her ex-lover, and the new love of her life. This is a short novel (about 130 pages) but the author gives us enough background on each character to help us understand their motivation and get into their psyche. For example, Sasha's views of self worth stems from a life-long longing for her mother (who died while giving birth to Sasha) and a childhood of being raised by a hustling, swinging father. Quite naturally, these experiences and unresolved issues shapes her adult ideologies on men, love, and sex and eventually explains her constant self-destructive behavior.
The supporting cast of characters was interesting as well and some had a few secrets and drama of their own to keep your nose in the book. I will admit, that based on the title and subtitle, I didn't think it would be the type of book I would want to read. But after the first few pages, it was clear that my preconceived notions about the book were wrong. I was hooked from the very beginning through the very end. This is a perfect book for a lazy summer afternoon...

While reading this book it was very good the story line was excellent. This girl Sasha seemed to have a classic case of never get enough. She was trifiling and decieving. Plus she was no young pup. Like I said the book was a very good read and if there is or will be a part II, please put one out there.

This is a very interesting book with a fairly broad appeal. It examines themes in the work of Angela Carter in a way that is very accessible. For the demanding student, there are more useful books - this book does not aim to go into the works in such depth as more specialist texts, but this is mostly a virtue. One can read this without needing specialist knowledge of critical technique, which for me makes it priceless! Recommended.