John Lennard. The Poetry Handbook; A Guide to Reading Poetry for Pleasure and Practical Criticism

When he prefaces the new edition of his Poetry Handbook, John Lennard deplores the fact that “reviewers ignore textbooks” (xiii). It is our purpose here to prove him wrong. Not only does any textbook deserve proper reviewing, but this one in particular, since it reflects on the hardships of all acts of criticism. The critical topic at stake is an age-old conundrum, that of teaching or learning how to read and understand poetry. As he embarks on this slippery endeavour, the author stays lucid ...