The Shelves

Best Poetry Books

A tight poetry shortlist - built for quick decisions, not endless scrolling.

Last refreshed 2026-02-27. We keep tuning this list as new titles land and reader interest shifts.

1. the princess saves herself in this one
Amanda Lovelace, ladybookmad
the princess saves herself in this one: Paperback – February 14, 2017
2. Nine Horses
Billy Collins
Nine Horses: Poems
3. The Collected Poems of Wallace Stevens
Wallace Stevens, Chris Beyers
The Collected Poems of Wallace Stevens: The Corrected Edition
4. Paradise Lost
John Milton
A Classics pick for readers exploring Paradise Lost.
5. Wild Mind, Wild Earth
David Hinton
Wild Mind, Wild Earth: Our Place in the Sixth Extinction
6. The Book of Disquiet
Fernando Pessoa, Bernardo Soares
A Fiction pick for readers exploring The Book of Disquiet.
7. Faust
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, David Constantine
Faust: Part 1
8. Hope Is the Thing with Feathers
Emily Dickinson
Hope Is the Thing with Feathers: The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson
9. The Waste Land and Other Poems
T.S. Eliot, Frank Kermode
A Poetry pick for readers exploring The Waste Land and Other Poems.
10. The Magpie at Night
Li Qingzhao, Wendy Chen
The Magpie at Night: The Complete Poems of Li Qingzhao (1084-1151)
11. Dog Songs
Mary Oliver
Dog Songs: Poems
12. Songs of Innocence and of Experience
William Blake, Geoffrey L. Keynes
A Poetry pick for readers exploring Songs of Innocence and of Experience.
13. The Selected Poems of Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson
A Poetry pick for readers exploring The Selected Poems of Emily Dickinson.
14. Deaf Republic
Ilya Kaminsky
Deaf Republic: Poems
15. No Time To Spare
Ursula K. Le Guin, Karen Joy Fowler
No Time To Spare: Thinking About What Matters
16. 100 Selected Poems
E.E. Cummings
A Poetry pick for readers exploring 100 Selected Poems.
17. Tender Buttons
Gertrude Stein, Seth Perlow
Tender Buttons: The Corrected Centennial Edition
18. Collected Poems, 1909-1962
T.S. Eliot
A Poetry pick for readers exploring Collected Poems, 1909-1962.
19. The Complete Poems
William Blake, Alicia Suskin Ostriker
A Poetry pick for readers exploring The Complete Poems.
20. Complete Poems of C. P. Cavafy
Constantinos P. Cavafy, Daniel Mendelsohn
Complete Poems of C. P. Cavafy: Including the First English Translation of the Unfinished Poems
21. The Dream Songs
John Berryman, Michael Hofmann
The Dream Songs: Poems
22. The Poetry Home Repair Manual
Ted Kooser
The Poetry Home Repair Manual: Practical Advice for Beginning Poets
23. Poems of Parenting
Loryn Brantz
A Poetry pick for readers exploring Poems of Parenting.
24. The Kojiki
Ō no Yasumaro, Gustav Heldt
The Kojiki: An Account of Ancient Matters

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