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★★★★★ 5
The other side of one of the giants of the Victorian era.
Format: Paperback
Thomas Hardy is my favorite novelist who has ever lived. I preface the review of this poetry anthology - which includes every one of the 900+ poems he wrote throughout his life, from the 1860s to just before his death in 1928 - in this way because I’m a bit biased. Hardy’s poetry is technically satisfying and nearly as moving as his novels, and you can tell that the same precision he brought to prose is on full display in his verse. I’m working my way through every single poem in this collection, and thus far my favorites are “The Convergence of the Twain” and “After the Last Breath.” There are other poets whose works I like better (Dickinson, Yeats, Wordsworth, and Whitman come to mind), but as an amateur Hardy scholar, reading this collection is positively invaluable to understand the full depth of his genius, and as always Wordsworth Classics delivers in terms of a quality paperback that should withstand years of enjoyment. I own many of their releases and have yet to find one that even slightly disappoints.
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Reviewed in the United States on April 25, 2026
