The 50 best poetry books to read
The best poetry books ranked: classic poets, modern collections, love poems and epic verse. A top 50 with short notes and where to read each one.
Poetry books are the best way to read poets you know only by their most famous poem. This list includes classic voices such as Whitman, Dickinson, Neruda and Rumi, epics like The Odyssey and modern collections by poets who are widely read today.
These are editorial picks, ranked for readability and lasting appeal, and nobody pays to be on the list. Not sure where to start? Try the book finder and get three picks for your mood.
Top 50 poetry books, ranked
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Leaves of Grass
The collection that celebrated the self and America.
- Inspiring
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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The Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson
Short, startling poems on death, nature and the soul.
- Thoughtful
- Moving
Where to read
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Milk and Honey
Short poems on love, loss, trauma and healing.
- Moving
Where to read
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The Sun and Her Flowers
A collection on wilting, falling, rooting, rising and blooming.
- Moving
- Inspiring
Where to read
-
Ariel
Intense, confessional poems from Plath's final months.
- Moving
- Thoughtful
Where to read
-
Howl and Other Poems
A landmark poem of the Beat generation.
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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The Waste Land
A fragmented portrait of post-war Europe.
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
A hesitant man reflects on love and ageing.
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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One Hundred Love Sonnets
Love poems and political verse from Chile's Nobel laureate.
- Moving
Where to read
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Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair
Early love poems that made Neruda famous.
- Moving
Where to read
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The Prophet
A wise man speaks on love, work and death.
- Inspiring
- Thoughtful
Where to read
-
The Essential Rumi
Selected poems from the 13th-century Persian mystic.
- Inspiring
- Thoughtful
Where to read
-
Gitanjali
Devotional poems from Asia's first Nobel laureate in literature.
- Inspiring
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou
Poems of strength, love and resilience.
- Inspiring
- Moving
Where to read
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The Odyssey
Odysseus spends ten years trying to get home after the Trojan War.
- Gripping
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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The Iliad
The anger of Achilles in the Trojan War.
- Gripping
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Paradise Lost
The epic of Satan's rebellion and the fall of man.
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Beowulf
A hero fights Grendel, his mother and a dragon.
- Gripping
Where to read
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Sonnets
154 sonnets on love, time and beauty.
- Moving
- Thoughtful
Where to read
-
Lyrical Ballads
The collection that launched English Romanticism.
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Songs of Innocence and of Experience
Paired poems on innocence and experience.
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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North of Boston
Frost's dramatic poems of rural life.
- Thoughtful
Where to read
-
The Weary Blues
Poems of Black life in America from the Harlem Renaissance.
- Inspiring
- Moving
Where to read
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New and Selected Poems
Poems of attention to nature and wonder.
- Inspiring
- Cozy
Where to read
-
Devotions
Mary Oliver's own selection from her life's work.
- Inspiring
- Cozy
Where to read
-
Birthday Letters
Poems addressed to Sylvia Plath.
- Moving
Where to read
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Duino Elegies
Ten elegies on existence and the angels.
- Thoughtful
Where to read
-
Citizen: An American Lyric
A book-length poem on everyday racism.
- Thoughtful
- Moving
Where to read
-
Night Sky with Exit Wounds
A debut poetry collection of family, desire and war.
- Moving
- Thoughtful
Where to read
-
Time Is a Mother
Poems written after the death of his mother.
- Moving
Where to read
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The Princess Saves Herself in This One
A poetry memoir in four parts.
- Moving
- Inspiring
Where to read
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Salt.
Minimalist poems on love and identity.
- Moving
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Whiskey Words & a Shovel
Short poems of love and heartbreak.
- Moving
Where to read
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The Black Unicorn
Poems that draw on African myth.
- Thoughtful
- Inspiring
Where to read
-
The Carrying
Poems on fertility, ageing and the natural world.
- Moving
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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The Hill We Climb
The inaugural poem that moved a nation.
- Inspiring
Where to read
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Call Us What We Carry
A collection of poems on a year of pandemic and hope.
- Inspiring
- Moving
Where to read
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Wild Geese
One of the most loved short poems in English.
- Inspiring
Where to read
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The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam
Quatrains on time, wine and mortality.
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Diwan-e-Ghalib
Urdu ghazals by the master poet of Delhi.
- Moving
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Bang-e-Dra
Iqbal's first Urdu collection of poems.
- Inspiring
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Nuskha Hai Wafa
Urdu poems of love and resistance.
- Moving
- Inspiring
Where to read
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The Collected Poems of W.B. Yeats
Poems of love, myth and Ireland.
- Thoughtful
- Moving
Where to read
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The Complete Poems of John Keats
Odes and sonnets of the Romantic poet.
- Moving
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Postcolonial Love Poem
Poems of desire, the body and the American landscape.
- Moving
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Lunch Poems
Poems written during lunch breaks in New York.
- Funny
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Life on Mars
Poems on space, loss and wonder.
- Thoughtful
- Moving
Where to read
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Bright Dead Things
Poems on grief and moving through the world.
- Moving
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Rilke's Book of Hours: Love Poems to God
Devotional poems translated by Anita Barrows and Joanna Macy.
- Inspiring
- Thoughtful
Where to read
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Sonnets from the Portuguese
Forty-four love sonnets.
- Moving
Where to read
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Types of poetry books
Looking for something more specific? These are the main kinds of poetry, with the sort of story or subject each one covers.
Classic poetry
Whitman, Dickinson, Blake and Keats.
Modern poetry collections
Contemporary poets in book form.
Love poems
Books about desire and loss.
Epic poetry
The Iliad, The Odyssey and Beowulf.
Poetry in translation
Neruda, Rilke and Tagore.
Urdu and Persian poetry
Ghalib, Iqbal, Faiz and Rumi.
Want to write and publish your own poetry book?
Many readers of this page are also writers. The stores in the lists above are where readers find books, while Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, IngramSpark, Lulu and Draft2Digital are the tools authors use to publish and distribute a book to those stores. You can also publish to Barnes & Noble Press and Google Play Books directly.
Our free KDP calculators help with print cost, royalties and cover size, and our publishing services can take care of setup for you.
Frequently asked questions
Which poetry book should I start with?
Start with a collection by one poet rather than a thick anthology. Mary Oliver, Rumi and Maya Angelou are accessible places to begin.
Are Urdu poets included?
Yes. Ghalib, Iqbal and Faiz are on the list, along with other poets in translation.
Where can I read or buy the best poetry books?
Each of the 50 books has links to Amazon, Kindle, Barnes & Noble and Google Play Books. Authors who want to publish their own poetry book can start with our free guides to Amazon KDP, IngramSpark, Lulu and Draft2Digital.
Not sure what to read next?
Pick a genre and a mood and the book finder will suggest three books to try.