Poetry & Plays

46 new books in the bestselling Little Black Classics series, to celebrate the first ever Penguin Classic in 1946 'How can the bird that is born for joy / Sit...

In this selection of poems covering the period 1972 to 2002. This beautifully elegant volume excludes the cartoon element, focusing on Leunig's brilliant texts, with all their absurdity, hilarity, poignancy...

Leonard Cohen made his name as a poet before he came to worldwide attention as a singer and songwriter. Book of Longing was twenty years in the making and written...

Part of the authoritative and acclaimed Penguin Shakespeare series, now rejacketed in the celebrated Penguin Classics livery Promised a golden future as ruler of Scotland by three sinister witches, Macbeth...

Beat movement icon and visionary poet, Allen Ginsberg broke boundaries with his fearless, pyrotechnic verse. This volume brings together the poems that made his name as a defining figure of...

Arguably William Shakespeare's most influential play, Hamlet portrays a young Prince's dilemma in choosing between moral integrity and the need for revenge following the murder of his father. Dealing with...

First published in the 1920's, The Prophet, Gibran's hugely popular guide to living, has sold millions of copies worldwide and is the most famous work of religious fiction of the...

Hailed as the greatest modern lyrical poet of Germany, Rainer Maria Rilke's genius lies in his passion for perfection, artistic integrity and 'willingness to remain a perpetual beginner'. The verse...

In 1929 Robert Graves went to live abroad permanently, vowing 'never to make England my home again'. This is his superb account of his life from his childhood and desperately...

William Shakespeare's sonnets are a beautiful expression of a range of human emotions - from love to grief, anger, jealousy and lust. Including the instantly recognisable 'Shall I compare thee...

Penguin Classics relaunch. Virgil's Aeneid, inspired by Homer and inspiration for Dante and Milton, is an immortal poem at the heart of Western life and culture. Virgil took as his...

Penguin Classics relaunch The epic tale of Odysseus and his ten-year journey home after the Trojan War forms one of the earliest and greatest works of Western literature. Confronted by...

Basho is one of the greatest Japanese poets and a master of haiku Basho, one of the greatest of Japanese poets and the master of haiku, was also a Buddhist...

W. F. Jackson Knight's prose translation captures the vitality and music of the original, while his introduction discusses Virgil's life and literary career, and his poetic style and vision. Aeneas...

Byron's exotic poem on the love life and adventures of Don Juan Byron's exuberant masterpiece tells of the adventures of Don Juan, beginning with his illicit love affair at the...

Only paperback edition of complete poems available Rossetti is unique among Victorian poets for the sheer range of her subject matter and the variety of her verse form. This collection...

Penguin Classics relaunch. The Faerie Queene was the first epic in English and one of the most influential poems in the language for later poets from Milton to Tennyson. Dedicating...

The greatest literary achievement of Greek civilization, now in a gorgeous new clothbound edition The Iliad is the first and the greatest literary achievement of Greek civilization - an epic...

Beautifully designed, clothbound edition Part of Penguin's beautiful hardback Clothbound Classics series, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith, these delectable and collectible editions are bound in high-quality colourful, tactile cloth...

Michael Hamburger's distinguished translation of a selection of poems by German poet Friedrich Holderlin Friedrich H lderlin (1770-1843) is now recognized as one of Europe's supreme poets. He first found...

The complete collection of Blake's symbolic and revolutionary poems, from the deceptive simplicity of Songs of Innocence, to the grandeur of Jerusalem One of the great English Romantic poets, William...

One of the greatest epics in Western literature, THE ILIAD recounts the story of the Trojan wars. This timeless poem still vividly conveys the horror and heroism of men and...

In this unique selection popular giants of the Romantic movement - Goethe, Schiller, Schlegel, Heine - are joined by an array of poets who deserve a wider audience in English,...

The comprehensive guide to a deeply human tradition of memory, mourning and consolation Elegy is among the world's oldest forms of literature. Born in Ancient Greece, practised by the Romans,...

"My all-time favorite collection of poems . . . Gibran's poetry always roots me in my humanity." --Rupi Kaur, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Milk and Honey, The...

From the award-winning translator ofThe IliadandThe Odysseycomes a brilliant new translation of Virgil's great epic Fleeing the ashes of Troy, Aeneas, Achilles' mighty foe in theIliad, begins an incredible journey...

A collection of the beautiful, surprising poems of Catullus. One of the most versatile of Roman poets, Catullus wrote verse of an almost unparalleled diversity and stylistic agility, from the...

The complete collection of the poetry of Walt Whitman, one of the most influential American voices In 1855 Walt Whitman published Leaves of Grass, the work which defined him as...

One of the great figures of English Romanticism, Coleridge's poems show diversity and imaginative genius One of the major figures of English Romanticism, Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) created works of...

The great epic of Western literature, translated by the acclaimed classicist Robert Fagles A Penguin Classic Robert Fagles, winner of the PEN/Ralph Manheim Medal for Translation and a 1996 Academy...

Tossed Up by the Beak of a Cormorant is a poetic collaboration between award-winning poet Nandi Chinna and Aboriginal elder Professor Anne Poelina. It explores the politics and the culture...

A major new anthology of Percy Bysshe Shelley's work, edited by Jack Donovan and Cian Duffy Percy Bysshe Shelley was one of the leading English Romantics and is critically regarded...

Drawing together for the first time his poems, letters, essays, songs and photographs, this wide-ranging collection is the essential record of the Beat icon Visionary poet Allen Ginsberg was one...

Legends from the Ancient North brings together some of the magical texts that most influenced Tolkien 'They summoned their friends, readied their horses, and prepared their helmets, shields, swords, coats...

A wonderful edition of Herbert's poetry, edited by his acclaimed biographer John Drury, and including elegant new translations of his Latin verse by Victoria Moul George Herbert wrote, but never...

After INFERNO and PURGATORIO, here is the last cantica (part) of the Divine Comedy, in a new translation by acclaimed translator Robin Kirkpatrick Having plunged to the uttermost depths of...

A fine collection of the greatest French tales about the legend of Arthur Taking the legends surrounding King Arthur and weaving in new psychological elements of personal desire and courtly...

First time in Black Classics 'Nonsense is the breath of my nostrils', wrote Edward Lear (1812-88), and this collection demonstrates the wonderfully varied ways in which he pursued his philosophy...

One of the most interesting and important poets of the seventeenth century. Member of Parliament, tutor to Oliver Cromwell's ward, satirist and friend of John Milton, Andrew Marvell was one...

This is to be the first verse translation of Goethe's poetry in Penguin Classics This is to be the first verse translation of Goethe's poetry in penguin classics and replaces...

In her introduction, Janet Gezari discusses issues of dating and authenticity that arise with Bronte's poems, and the ways in which the Gondal poems relate to the lost prose narratives...

Penguin Classics relaunch Keats's first volume of poems, published in 1817, demonstrated both his belief in the consummate power of poetry and his liberal views. While he was criticized by...

Lyrical, heartbreaking and hopeful, the Peckham poet's debut collection exploring the lives of young Black boys, and the architecture that shapes them What is it like to grow up in...

Robin Kirkpatrick's superb translation of the most famous work of Italian literature, in a one-volume edition The Divine Comedy describes Dante's descent into Hell with Virgil as a guide; his...

"I am large, I contain multitudes" A Penguin Classic When Walt Whitman self-published his Leaves of Grass in July 1855, he altered the course of literary history. One of the...

Published for the centenary of his birth, a gathering of lucid, intensely lyrical poetry from one of the twentieth century's pre-eminent literary voices be courageous when reason fails you be...

Winner of the 2017 T. S. Eliot Prize Winner of the 2017 Felix Dennis Prize for Best First Collection A Guardian / Daily Telegraph Book of the Year PBS Summer...

One of the most imaginative minds alive retells the greatest stories in history - the Greek Myths The Greek myths are amongst the best stories ever told, passed down through...