Review of The Imperium Anthology Of English Verse
Before the gods that made the gods
Had seen their sunrise pass,
The White Horse of the White Horse Vale
Was cut out of the grass.
From The Ballad of the White Horse by Chesterton
Benjamin Afer, or Panama Hat as he is known online, has put together a magnificent collection of poems written in the English language.. Though he could not include all the poems he wanted to and while others may have different tastes, he has nonetheless produced an excellent testament to the finest poetry the English language has to offer.
Included in the book are poems by Edmund Spenser, Shakespeare, John Milton, Wordsworth, Thomas Grey, Keats, Robert Browning, Lewis Carroll, Stephen Crane, and many more! In total, each of the 49 authors has four or five poems in the anthology, . There are also poems included that originate from anonymous sources, such as Robin Hood and the Monk.
Afer suggests that the poems in the collection are not just aesthetic marvels to admire for their beauty. They also manifest a body of transcendent values. While the modern progressive, antithetical to the natural and immaterial, attacks these poems, we must recover them so that they can once more enrich the minds of the young and impressionable with that which will bring power, truth and life to our lives, now and in the future.
As a young person who was never taught to appreciate poetry, I thought that the book’s introduction was superb. Not only does it lay out the cultural importance of poetry for the English, it also encourages the reader to develop and grow their love of poetry. Afer tells us to delve into this anthology and, without a shred of trepidation, be proud of our language . ‘To be born to the English tongue is surely one of the greatest privileges of birth there is’. He goes on to explain how the English language is the beating heart of poetry, the core of what makes it enjoyable and stimulating as an art .
Thanks to this book, I have discovered that I really like the poetry of Chesterton. One of his poems is at the start of this review, and below is another of his gems called The Donkey:
When fishes flew and forests walked
And figs grew upon thorn,
Some moment when the moon was blood
Then surely I was born.
With monstrous head and sickening cry
And ears like errant wings,
The devil’s walking parody
On all four footed things.
The tattered outlaw of the earth,
Of ancient crooked will;
Starve, scourse, deride me: I am dumb,
I keep my secret still.
Fools! For I also had my hour;
One far fierce hour and sweet:
There was a shout about my ears,
And palms before my feet.
Reading this poem makes me wonder: do accents change up the rhyming nature of the poems?
Get your paws on a copy of this book. It's big enough to hold many a good line, and small enough to be carried conveniently. Whether you are on a delayed train, relaxing in your living room, or at an event where you want to impress people, this book comes in handy in all those situations and more. Get it now!
Review by Shieldmaiden
Here is the link to the book on the Imperium Press Website
https://www.imperiumpress.org/shop/the-imperium-anthology-of-english-verse/