Name: Sailing Alone Around the Room
ISBN: 9780375755194

Billy Collins

Offers a collection of witty, emotional, and direct poems by the popular and critically acclaimed poet, including selections from his four previous collections and new works such as "Man Listening to a Disc," about headphones.

New and Selected Poems

Sailing Alone Around the Room

Melody Izard

I have to say that I glaze over at most poetry. I always feel that I need to "tie the poem to a chair with rope and torture a confession out of it". But perhaps this book helped me "walk inside the poem's room and feel the walls for a light switch". Although I'll still do that with the hose for beating behind my back.

Pranav Mutatkar

Maybe a strong 4 1/2? Didn't think I really liked poetry until I read this one. It's accessible that is what I dig about plus it made me get into poetry and made me understand what poetry means and why it exists. Not all poems are great obviously but some of them are super strong.

Jade Flynn

Some of my favourites: Winter Syntax, The Rival Poet, Books, Introduction to Poetry, Schoolsville, A History of Weather & Forgetfulness.


"But all they want to do
 is tie the poem to the chair with a rope 
 and torture a confession out of it. 

 They begin beating it with a hose
 to find out what it really means." 

 - Introduction to Poetry

Sailing Alone Around the Room New and Selected Poems