I honestly can’t say that I’m a poetry reader – my TBR rarely has a collection of poems in it. I wonder why that is? Perhaps poetry makes demands on the reader that a novel doesn’t, requires a different level of attention, a deeper engagement?
As my professors used to say, discuss.
However, whenever I stumble upon a poem, I can’t help but fall under its spell. Poetry gets under my skin in a way that differs from other literature.
I do have one collection of poetry on my bookshelf. I’m a huge fan of Emily Dickinson. When I visited her home/museum in Northampton, Massachusetts last year, I signed up for the house newsletter. While following links from the newsletter, I fell down a research rabbit hole and discovered something I didn’t know about one of my favorite authors, Agatha Christie.
Agatha Christie wrote poetry. Quelle surprise!
https://www.agathachristie.com/search/results?q=poetry
Her first collection of poems, The Road of Dreams, was published at her own expense in 1925. A critic praised her “lyric gifts” but also told her that it wouldn’t sell. Since only one edition was printed, it seems that he was correct. Luckily for us, she turned her prodigious gifts to other pursuits.
Are you a poetry reader? Did you know that Agatha Christie wrote poetry? Have you discovered anything about a favorite author that surprised you?
Shari Randall is the author of the Lobster Shack Mystery series set in charming Mystic, CT. As Meri Allen, she writes the Ice Cream Shop Mysteries.
