English Poetry Literature

Paradise Lost is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The first version, published in 1667, consists of ten books with over ten thousand lines of verse. A second edition followed in 1674, arranged into twelve books (in the manner of Virgil's Aeneid) with minor revisions throughout. It is considered by critics to be Milton's major work, and it helped solidify his reputation as one of the greatest English poets of his time.

Jason and the Golden Fleece is one of the finest tales of Ancient Greece, an epic journey of adventure and trial standing beside similar stories of Perseus, Theseus and the Labours of Heracles. The finest classic account comes from Apollonius of Rhodes, the Greek poet of the 3rd century BCE and librarian at Alexandria. Though less well-known than Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, and much shorter, it is an epic poem which is both exciting and moving, with remarkably vivid portraits of the main characters, Jason and Medea.

Sadie has learned to tie her shoes! Now she wants to tie everything she can. She ties her socks, her sleeves, and even her hair! She gets so excited about tying other things together, though, that she doesn’t notice her shoe has come untied again!

In this poem, a bee, a flower, a butterfly, and a snail all ask, “Where’s the rain?” Finally, a girl brings the rain to them with her watering pail.

Ranier Maria Rilke challenges you, "...to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way into the answers." Rilke's ability to combine the sensual and the spiritual into an inspired vision of the art of living is brought to vivid life in his letters. Through his eyes, the everyday difficulties of love, sex, solitude, sadness, and doubt are seen as the archetypal elements of the drama called life.

From vibrant red flowers and clear blue skies to big brown trees and buzzing yellow bees, color is everywhere in nature. Fun rhyming text brings the bold colors of nature to young listeners.

Zoom! The elevator zips from the bottom floor to the top floor of a tall building. Beep! Beep! The subway stops for people to get on and off. Fun rhyming text will help young listeners discover position words while exploring the city.

Big, stomping elephants. Small, colorful birds. Tall, spotted giraffes. Short, waddling penguins. Opposites are all around at the zoo! Fun rhyming text takes young children on a trip to explore opposites at the zoo.

This groundbreaking 2025 edition presents the most complete and seamless version of The Epic of Gilgamesh ever published in English. Meticulously reconstructed and translated from the Standard Babylonian tablets—along with integrated Sumerian and Old Babylonian variants—it delivers the full poetic journey of Gilgamesh and Enkidu with clarity, emotional power, and mythic resonance.

This Collection of 63 poems by various authors including Christina Rossetti, Thomas Ken, John Nelson Darby, Richard Baxter, Isaac Watts, Gerhardt Ter Steegan, Anne Ross Cousin and many others has been brought together in order that these spiritual truths and impressions, presented in poetical form, will comfort and edify God's people as they wrestle daily with the world, the flesh, and the devil.

After four hundred years of slavery in Egypt, the Israelites are prepared to enter the land of Canaan. There’s only one problem: It’s crawling with giants. They’re the Seed of the Serpent with many clans: Anakim, Rephaim, Zuzim and others. Two Israelites, Joshua and Caleb, have the faith to lead Israel against these monsters.

In this companion volume to Joshua Valiant, the story of the conquest of the Promised Land of Canaan continues. Joshua’s first target in Canaan: The impenetrable mighty walls of Jericho. God has been preparing a Canaanite harlot named Rahab to help Israel. You only think you know her story. Rahab has fallen in love with an Israelite warrior whose child she bears in the line of Messiah.

The largest collection of poetry ever assembled in English by “the most important Spanish-language writer since Cervantes” (Mario Vargas Llosa) A Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition with flaps and deckle-edged paper Though universally acclaimed for his dazzling fictions, Jorge Luis Borges...

This stunning collection of poetry features Alan Seeger’s most notable works, illustrating his talent for vivid, lyrical verse and his deeply moving explorations of love, war and morality. Seeger, who enlisted in the French Foreign Legion in World War I, was renowned for his patriotic and idealistic war poems. Through poignant meditations on death and the fragility of life, Seegar affectingly captures the beauty of living, elegantly balancing it with the grim realities of war.

Witty, charismatic and popular in society, Rupert Brooke made fast friends with the Bloomsbury group of writers in his youth, having tried his hand at poetry from an early age. But it was the First World War, where Brooke was commissioned into the Royal Navy, that inspired his most enduring works. In this beautifully crafted collection, we are offered Brooke’s most notable and cherished poems.

Renowned for his profound connection with the English countryside, and his introspective exploration of nature, morality and the human condition, this beautifully curated collection showcases Edward Thomas’s poetry at its very best. Steeped in a quiet beauty and touching melancholy, Thomas’s verse takes its readers through fields, along hedgerows and down lonely lanes, pausing to meditate on time, loss and the fragility of life.

Have you ever walked through a garden and wondered which part of a fruit or vegetable you’re supposed to eat? It could be the pod, the leaves, the seeds, the root, or even the flower! Follow along with this poem to learn about fresh, tasty veggies!

The finest voices reading a wonderful selection of poetry accompanied by selected classical music.

The Odyssey by Homer in the Samuel Butler translation, narrated by Michael Bronks. Follow Odysseus through treacherous seas, encounters with gods like Athena and Poseidon, and mythical creatures such as the Cyclops and Sirens. Experience the epic journey of Greek mythology, heroism, and adventure that defines The Odyssey in its full, timeless form.

Led by his guide, Beatrice, Dante leaves the Earth behind and soars through the heavenly spheres of Paradise. In this third and final part of The Divine Comedy, he encounters the just rulers and holy saints of the Church. The horrors of Inferno and the trials of Purgatory are left far behind. Ultimately, in Paradise, Dante is granted a vision of God’s Heavenly court: the angels, the Blessed Virgin, and God Himself.