Why does a great lyric poem ask to be reread, even after we know it by
heart? In How Poems Get Made, acclaimed poet and critic James
Longenbach answers this question by discussing a wide range of exemplary
poems, from Shakespeare through Blake, Dickinson, and Moore, to a
variety of poets making poems today. In each chapter of How Poems Get
Made, Longenbach examines a specific aspect of the poetic
medium--including Diction, Syntax, Rhythm, Echo, Figure, and Tone--and
shows how a poet may manipulate these most basic elements to bring a
poem to life.