Selected Poems (Penguin Popular Classics)

In his unconventional verse, Walt Whitman spoke in a powerful, sensual, oratorical, and inspiring voice. His most famous work, Leaves of Grass, was a long-term project that the poet compared to the building of a cathedral or the slow growth of a tree. During his lifetime, from 1819 to 1892, it went through nine editions. Today it is regarded as a landmark of American literature.This volume contains 24 poems from Leaves of Grass, offering a generous sampling of Whitman’s best and most representative verses. Featured works include I Hear America Singing, I Sing the Body Electric, Song of the Open Road, Out of Cradle Endlessly Rocking, When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d, and O Captain! My Captain! — all reprinted from an authoritative text.