Poetry audiobooks

Rilke

By: Rainer Rilke & Stephen Mitchell

Narrated by: Stephen Mitchell

Length: 1 hour 55 minutes

Abridged: No

Rainer Maria Rilke has been called the most significant and compelling poet of spiritual experience of the 20th century. His exploration of the struggle between life and art and the supremacy of divine love over personal love has touched the hearts of men and women everywhere. The poems in this reading are from the selected poetry of Rainer... Read more

Fuel

By: Naomi Shihab Nye

Narrated by: Naomi Shihab Nye

Length: 2 hours 14 minutes

Abridged: No

Poems that find meaning in a world where we are "so tired of meaning nothing." Read more

The Way of Passion - Abridged

By: Andrew Harvey

Narrated by: Andrew Harvey

Length: 2 hours 57 minutes

Abridged: Yes

The Way of Passion draws on the poems of Jalalud-Din Rumi (1207-1273) to present a guide to the timeless truth and beauty of Rumi's words. Inspired by Rumi's voice and by his own startling ability to see into the innermost heart of life, Andrew Harvey urges us to change, to have faith, and to act through love to transform this time of apocalypse... Read more

Poetry of the Romantics

By: Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Percy Bysshe Shelley, ...

Narrated by: Joan Allen, Stephen Fry, Julie Christie, Christ...

Length: 1 hour 39 minutes

Abridged: No

The period of English romantic poetry occurred roughly between 1800 and 1850 and was represented by poets such as William Blake, Lord Byron, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, John Keats, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and William Wordsworth. All of these poets are featured in this collection of more than 50 poems read by award-winning actors that include Joan... Read more

Bestiary

By: Stephen Mitchell

Narrated by: Stephen Mitchell

Length: 1 hour 29 minutes

Abridged: No

In this treasury of passionate and humorous encounters with animals, Stephen Mitchell has collected animal poems from many ages and cultures. Included here are excerpts from ancient masterpieces like The Hymn to the Sun by Pharaoh Amenhotep IV, The Book of Job, as well as haikus by Basho and Issa. Additional works included here are poems by... Read more

The Poetry of Robert Frost

By: Robert Frost

Narrated by: Kevin McCarthy, Melissa Manchester, Elliott Gou...

Length: 1 hour 40 minutes

Abridged: No

Drawing upon everyday incidents, common situations, and rural imagery, Robert Frost fashioned poetry of great lyrical beauty and potent symbolism. His language is simple, clear, and colloquial, yet dense with meaning and wider significance. This brilliant collection features some of Frost's greatest works, including "The Road Not Taken," "Asking... Read more

The Complete Sonnets of William Shakespeare

By: William Shakespeare, Susan Anspach, Stephanie B...

Narrated by: Christopher Cazenove

Length: 3 hours 3 minutes

Abridged: No

The sonnets of William Shakespeare are among the most famous love poems in the English language. For sustained dramatic intrigue and sophistication of plot, these works are at least the equal of Shakespeare's greatest plays. Compelling, subtle, and intellectually rigorous—yet taut with intense emotion—each poem invites study, interpretation, and... Read more

The Muse in the Body

By: Catherine Barnett, Marina Tsvetayeva, Julie Pat...

Narrated by: Anne Waldman

Length: 1 hour 9 minutes

Abridged: No

How have women poets approached the question of eros throughout history? This collection explores the poetry of both physical and spiritual longing and fulfillment from ancient Greece to New York's East Village. In 50 poems, more than a dozen women poets express all the facets of desire. Included in this collection are Sappho, Mirabai, Hilda... Read more

Stepping Stones - Abridged

By: Seamus Heaney

Narrated by: Seamus Heaney

Length: 1 hour 14 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Recipient of the 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature, poet Seamus Heaney brings beautiful focus to life in Ireland. Through his poetry, he encapsulates the country’s historical and political details while connecting it to the personal lives of the citizens. Read more

The Poetry of William Butler Yeats

By: William Yeats

Narrated by: Stephanie Beacham

Length: 1 hour 33 minutes

Abridged: No

William Butler Yeats's early poetry is suffused with the radiant lyricism of Irish folklore and myth; the yearning romance and distinctly Irish voice of these first works of the Nobel laureate have inspired scores of poets. This splendid selection offers a distinctive sampling of the Yeatsian voice. Among the many famed works included are "The... Read more

The Poetry of Carl Sandburg

By: Carl Sandburg

Narrated by: Susan Anspach, Roscoe Lee Browne, Robert Foxwor...

Length: 1 hour 33 minutes

Abridged: No

Known as a "poet of the people," Carl Sandburg wrote verses infused with soulfulness and lyric grace, and his work was characterized with a love and compassion for the common man. Here is a collection of nearly 100 of his best poems, including "Chicago," "Fog," "To a Contemporary Bunkshooter," "Masses," and "The Great Hunt," as well as other... Read more

3 Dozen Poems

By: author

Narrated by: Garrison Keillor

Length: 1 hour 13 minutes

Abridged: No

The favorite poems from Garrison Keillor's daily radio program The Writer's Almanac.

Selections include:
  Ge Mig En Dag (Scandinavian traditional)
Abecedary (Thomas Disch)
Old Mother Hubbard (traditional)
Frankenstein (Edward Field)
Names of Horses (Donald Hall)
To One Who Asked Me Why I Love J.G. (Ephelia)
What I Learned from... Read more

Red Suitcase

By: Naomi Shihab Nye

Narrated by: Naomi Shihab Nye

Length: 1 hour 38 minutes

Abridged: No

Poet, teacher, essayist, anthologist, songwriter and singer, Naomi Shihab Nye is one of the country's most acclaimed writers. Her voice is generous; her vision true; her subjects ordinary people, and ordinary situations which, when rendered through her language, become remarkable. In this, her fourth full collection of poetry, we see with new... Read more

The Book of Psalms

By: Michael York

Narrated by: Michael York

Length: 6 hours 20 minutes

Abridged: No

The Psalms are a unique portion of the Old Testament—150 songs and poems—that cover a wide range of emotions to express the heart and essence of humanity. Written over several centuries by multiple authors, these Psalms illustrate the theology and worship of the Israelites, imparting lessons through the ages. This reading uses the King James... Read more

Footprints

By: Margaret Powers

Narrated by: Joan Winmill Brown

Length: 1 hour 36 minutes

Abridged: No

One night I dreamed a dream. I was walking along the beach with my Lord. So begins "Footprints," a poem written in 1964 by a young woman named Margaret Fishback, who was searching for direction at the crossroads of her life. The poem has appeared on plaques and cards, calendars, and posters, inspiring millions of people all over the world. The... Read more

Carnival of the Animals

By: Ogden Nash

Narrated by: Ted Danson

Length: 26 minutes

Abridged: No

This star-studded rendition of Ogden Nash's humorous verses—backed by a full-orchestra performance of Saint-Saëns' Carnival of the Animals—will surely delight adults and children of all ages. A great way to introduce children to classical music, youngsters will enjoy the animal depictions in the sounds of Saint-Saëns'... Read more

Becoming Light

By: Erica Jong

Narrated by: Erica Jong

Length: 2 hours 48 minutes

Abridged: No

Although most famous for her bestselling fiction, including Fear of Flying and Any Woman's Blues, Erica Jong started her publishing career as a poet. The celebrated author enjoys an international reputation for her verse. An essential collection of poetry, Becoming Light includes early poems previously uncollected in book form, selections from... Read more

Poems of Rumi

By: RumiRumi & Coleman Barks

Narrated by: Robert Bly

Length: 2 hours 21 minutes

Abridged: No

Jalaluddin Rumi, known simply as Rumi, is unquestionably one of the greatest spiritual poets of the world. For more than eight centuries, Rumi has enchanted and enthralled readers from every faith and background with his universal themes of love, friendship, and spirituality, which he seamlessly wove into resplendent poetry. This audio features... Read more

Rumi: Poet Of Divine Ecstasy

By: Coleman Barks

Narrated by: Michael Toms

Length: 52 minutes

Abridged: No

Drunk with the Divine, Rumi wrote 20,000 poems of mystical, ineffable love of God. "There is a ferocity in his longing that maybe we don't understand," says Barks. Listen in and understand a little better. A wondrous, exhilarating look at the exultant poetry of Jelaluddin Rumi, the 13th century Sufi poet, with Coleman Barks.Coleman Barks taught... Read more

Der schöne 27. September (ungekürzt)

By: Thomas Brasch

Narrated by: Lars Eidinger

Length: 46 minutes

Abridged: No

Der bekannteste Gedichtband von Thomas Brasch erschien 1980 - vier Jahre nach seiner Ausreise aus der DDR. Im selben Jahr wurde ihm der FAZ-Preis für Literatur verliehen, zur Begründung hieß es: "... Diese Verse, die sich gleichermaßen durch hohe Musikalität wie durch scharfe Intellektualität auszeichnen, tragen zur Erneuerung traditioneller... Read more

Les plus beaux poèmes de Francis Jammes - Abridged

By: Francis Jammes

Narrated by: Georges Wilson, Georges Chamarat, Jean Deschamp...

Length: 11 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Mais où sont les neiges d'antan... Cueillez dès aujourd'hui les roses de la vie... Madame se meurt. Madame est morte... il neigeait, il neigeait toujours... Les pages qu'il faut connaître, parce qu'elles font partie intégrante du patrimoine de la France, que les jeunes par conséquent ont à apprendre - et y a-t-il procédé plus séduisant et plus... Read more

Les plus beaux poèmes de Saint John Perse - Abridged

By: Saint John Perse

Narrated by: Jean Topart & Jean-Louis Jemma

Length: 50 minutes

Abridged: Yes

Extraits de : Eloge, La gloire des rois, Anabase, Exil, Vents, Amer. Il manquait, parmi les grands poètes de ce siècle, un personnage hautain, toujours isolé, toujours absent, qui transmît aux hommes, d'une voix voilée et d'un geste à peine entrevu, un discours ample et sibyllin, plein de terribles vigueurs et d'énigmes, de ces discours que... Read more

Jeder Engel ist schrecklich - Freie Rezitation von Rainer Maria Rilkes "Duineser Elegien". Live-Mitschnitt (Ungekürzte Lesung)

By: Rainer Maria Rilke

Narrated by: Edgar Selge & Franziska Walser

Length: 1 hour 21 minutes

Abridged: No

Rilkes Verse mit Kopf und Herz begreifen Die "Duineser Elegien" gehören zum Schönsten, das in deutscher Sprache geschrieben wurde. Über zehn Jahre, von 1912-1922, arbeitete Rainer Maria Rilke an den Elegien, deren Thema die Fülle des menschlichen Daseins ist. Das Schauspieler:innen-Paar Franziska Walser und Edgar Selge widmet sich ihnen seit... Read more