chicken0death's review against another edition
5.0
This is one of my favorite books. When I'm feeling down, I read this book. When I'm feeling particularly full of life, I read this book. When spring comes, I read this book.
It speaks to me in ways few books ever have. I'm constantly finding new passages and poems that resonate with me. It is a book that constantly grows with me.
It speaks to me in ways few books ever have. I'm constantly finding new passages and poems that resonate with me. It is a book that constantly grows with me.
demux's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
5.0
this has shaped me
“I too am not a bit tamed .... I too am untranslatable,
I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world.”
“I too am not a bit tamed .... I too am untranslatable,
I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world.”
annkitsch's review against another edition
3.0
These poems felt like that one audio u hear on tiktok/ Instagram reels where Beyoncé’s crazy in love instrumental plays and someone is going “Ammeyrican dreamm, best countrayy”
zarahzoe's review against another edition
4.0
I read the penguin classics edition of this and was a bit unsatisfied to find out that it was not the final version that Whitman published. It does not contain O Captain, my Captain and When Lilacs last in the Dooryard Bloom'd, and it made me sad..
Still! Those Words! hot damn this was beatiful! I have never read a poem that was 120 pages long but I loved every verse of it.
Still! Those Words! hot damn this was beatiful! I have never read a poem that was 120 pages long but I loved every verse of it.
jayrinehart's review against another edition
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
fluffernutterfriday's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
NOTE: I read a 600-page version from 1930 that captured pretty much everything he's ever written, so my reading experience was definitely different.
I mean, it's Walt. Fully worth the hype, though I'll need to parse back through and really drink these poems up, slowly, one by one, when I'm not spending so much attention and curiosity on graduate school. The autobiographical piece at the end was a perfect little bow on the work. I loved hearing what he wanted to do, and itnresonated deeply with my own purpose as a writer.
I mean, it's Walt. Fully worth the hype, though I'll need to parse back through and really drink these poems up, slowly, one by one, when I'm not spending so much attention and curiosity on graduate school. The autobiographical piece at the end was a perfect little bow on the work. I loved hearing what he wanted to do, and itnresonated deeply with my own purpose as a writer.
rebeccazh's review against another edition
i only read song of myself and i sing the body electric but i loved how celebratory they were of life and the human body. he was reveling in the simplest of pleasures, like a blade of grass or a lover's touch, but also so appreciative of the sublime
aceface's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
moseslh's review against another edition
5.0
Whitman's introduction to the original Leaves of Grass was honestly quite difficult to get through. He came off as arrogant and full of himself, but after reading "Song of Myself" I decided his self-congratulatory air was, perhaps, deserved. Whitman's hopeful optimism about all America is and all it has the potential to be, as well as his ability to find the beauty in everyone without shying away from critiques of our nation's evils, is refreshing to read in 2020. Whitman was not naive to America's flaws or the country's divisions, which were arguably as bad when this was published in 1855, half a decade before the Civil War, as they are now. However, he manages to somehow embrace diversity and find unity within it. Most of his poetry is in the first person, but he identifies as different individuals or archetypes between lines or verses, bringing out the common experiences and values that tie together seemingly disparate groups. I loved reading these and now might have to read Whitman's (much longer) final edition of Leaves of Grass.
dw_hanna's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0