Recommendations based on Selected Poemsby W.H. Auden

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. The Waste Land and Other Poems

    by T.S. Eliot
    A collection of poems exploring themes of identity, mortality, and spiritual and psychological desolation.

    The Waste Land and Other Poems , by T. S. Eliot , is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including ... (Barnes & Noble)

  2. The Rings of Saturn

    by W.G. Sebald
    An exploration of the physical and metaphysical landscapes of the English coast.

    The Rings of Saturn — with its curious archive of photographs — records a walking tour along the east coast of England. A few of the things which cross the path and mind of its narrator (who both is ... (Goodreads)

  3. Leaves of Grass

    by Walt Whitman
    An exploration of the relationship between the individual and the divine, viewed through the lens of nature and its rhythms.

    A collection of quintessentially American poems, the seminal work of one of the most influential writers of the nineteenth century. ... (Goodreads)

  4. Pedro Páramo

    by Juan Rulfo
    A man returns to his hometown in search of his father, discovering the ghostly inhabitants.

    A classic of Mexican modern literature about a haunted village. As one enters Juan Rulfo's legendary novel, one follows a dusty road to a town of death. Time shifts from one consciousness to another ... (Goodreads)

  5. The Collected Poems of W.B. Yeats

    by W.B. Yeats
    Exploration of loss, love, and life's journey through the lens of Irish folklore and literature.

    The Collected Poems of W. B. Yeats includes all of the poems authorized by Yeats for inclusion in his standard canon. Breathtaking in range, it encompasses the entire arc of his career, from luminous ... (Goodreads)

  6. 100 Selected Poems

    by E.E. Cummings
    An exploration of life, love, and the beauty of nature through the lens of poetry.

    E.E. Cummings is without question one of the major poets of this century, and this volume, first published in 1959, is indispensable for every lover of modern lyrical verse. It contains one hundred ... (Barnes & Noble)

  7. Reservoir 13

    by Jon McGregor
    A village's search for the truth behind a young girl's disappearance, uncovering secrets along the way.

    Midwinter in an English village. A teenage girl has gone missing. Everyone is called upon to join the search. The villagers fan out across the moors as the police set up roadblocks and a crowd of ... (Goodreads)

  8. Songs of Innocence and of Experience

    by William Blake
    A poetic collection exploring the duality of human nature, innocence and experience.

    Songs of Innocence and of Experience, is an collection of poems by William Blake., Note:, For a complete Table of Contents of the included poems, see the 'Questions' section below. This book appeared ... (Goodreads)

  9. The Sound and the Fury

    by William Faulkner
    Tragic story of the decline of a southern family, exploring the human condition.

    The first section of the novel is narrated by Benjamin "Benjy" Compson, a source of shame to the family due to his diminished mental capacity; the only characters who show genuine care for him are ... (Wikipedia)

  10. Notes from Underground, White Nights, The Dream of a Ridiculous Man, and Selections from The House of the Dead

    by Fyodor Dostoevsky
    A collection of four works exploring the human psyche, morality, and existentialism through the lens of Russian society.

    The story opens with the narrator wandering the streets of St. Petersburg . He is contemplating the ridiculousness of his own life, and his recent realization that nothing matters to him any more. It ... (Wikipedia)

  11. Harrison Bergeron

    by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
    A dystopian future where equality is enforced through handicapping citizens.

    In the year 2081, the 211th, 212th, and 213th amendments to the Constitution dictate that all Americans are fully equal and not allowed to be smarter, better-looking, or more physically able than ... (Wikipedia)

  12. The Oresteia: Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, The Eumenides

    by Aeschylus
    Tragedy of a cursed family and their struggle to find the truth and justice.

    Alternate cover edition can be found, here,, here,, here,, here, In the Oresteia—the only trilogy in Greek drama which survives from antiquity—Aeschylus took as his subject the bloody chain of murder ... (Goodreads)

  13. The Oedipus Cycle: Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone

    by Sophocles
    Ancient tragedy of a family's fall from grace due to a fateful prophecy.

    English versions of Sophocles’ three great tragedies based on the myth of Oedipus, translated for a modern audience by two gifted poets. Index. ... (Barnes & Noble)

  14. The Complete Works

    by William Shakespeare
    A comprehensive collection of works, containing plays, sonnets, and narrative poems.

    Tempest Two Gentlemen of Verona Merry Wives of Windsor Measure for Measure Comedy of Errors Much Ado About Nothing Love's Labour's Lost Midsummer Night's Dream Merchant of Venice As You Like It ... (Goodreads)

  15. Angels in America

    by Tony Kushner
    Epic story of America in the midst of the AIDS crisis, exploring themes of identity, loss, and hope.

    Set in New York City, the play takes place between October 1985 and February 1986. , The play begins with the funeral of Sarah Ironson, an elderly Jewish woman, whose rabbi eulogizes not only her, ... (Wikipedia)

  16. Selected Stories of Anton Chekhov

    by Anton Chekhov
    A collection of short stories depicting the lives of ordinary people in Russia.

    Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky, the highly acclaimed translators of War and Peace, Doctor Zhivago, and Anna Karenina, which was an Oprah Book Club pick and million-copy bestseller, bring ... (Goodreads)

  17. The Complete Poems 1927-1979

    by Elizabeth Bishop
    A lyrical exploration of life's moments, relationships, and nature.

    This study guide consists of approx. 36 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more – everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of The Complete Poems, 1927-1979. This ... (Barnes & Noble)

  18. In Search of Lost Time

    by Marcel Proust
    An exploration of memory, identity and loss of innocence, through the narrator's journey of self-discovery.

    On the surface a traditional "Bildungsroman" describing the narrator’s journey of self-discovery, this huge and complex book is also a panoramic and richly comic portrait of France in the author’s ... (Goodreads)

  19. Inferno

    by Dante Alighieri
    An epic journey through the nine circles of Hell, guided by the Roman poet Virgil.

    Of the great poets, Dante is one of the most elusive and therefore one of the most difficult to adequately render into English verse. In the Inferno, Dante not only judges sin but strives to ... (Goodreads)

  20. Cannery Row

    by John Steinbeck
    An exploration of the lives of the inhabitants of a small town in California.

    Cannery Row has a simple premise: Mack and his friends are trying to do something nice for their friend Doc, who has been good to them without asking for reward. Mack hits on the idea that they ... (Wikipedia)

  21. Sweet Tooth

    by Ian McEwan
    Story of a young woman's journey of self-discovery and the moral dilemmas she faces.

    The plot is set in early-1970s England. Serena Frome ("rhymes with plume"), the daughter of an Anglican bishop, shows a talent for mathematics and is admitted to the University of Cambridge . But she ... (Wikipedia)

  22. The Complete Poems

    by William Blake
    A collection of poems that explore the spiritual, supernatural, and philosophical realms.

    One of the great English Romantic poets, William Blake (1757-1827) was an artist, poet, mystic and visionary. His work ranges from the deceptively simple and lyrical Songs of Innocence and their ... (Goodreads)

  23. Lucky Jim

    by Kingsley Amis
    A story of a young lecturer struggling to make it in academia, while learning the importance of self-discovery.

    Jim Dixon is a lecturer in medieval history at a red brick university in the English Midlands . He has made an unsure start and, towards the end of the academic year, is concerned about losing his ... (Wikipedia)

  24. Breakfast of Champions

    by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
    A humorous exploration of life's absurdities, through a madcap journey of a protagonist.

    Kilgore Trout is a widely published, but ignored and virtually invisible writer who is invited to deliver a keynote address at a local arts festival in distant Midland City. Dwayne Hoover is a ... (Wikipedia)

  25. Ariel

    by Sylvia Plath
    A collection of raw and intense poems that explore themes of death, femininity, and personal struggle.

    Sylvia Plath's celebrated collection. When Sylvia Plath died, she not only left behind a prolific life but also her unpublished literary masterpiece, Ariel . Her husband, Ted Hughes, brought the ... (Goodreads)

  26. All the King's Men

    by Robert Penn Warren
    A powerful political drama that follows a governor's rise and fall as he grapples with ambition, morality and power.

    All the King's Men is a 1946 novel by Robert Penn Warren. Its title is drawn from the nursery rhyme "Humpty Dumpty". The novel tells the story of charismatic populist governor Willie Stark and his ... (Goodreads)

  27. The Remains of the Day

    by Kazuo Ishiguro
    A butler reflects on his past, grappling with the lost opportunities of a life devoted to service.

    The novel tells, in first-person narration , the story of Stevens, an English butler who has dedicated his life to the loyal service of Lord Darlington (who is recently deceased, and whom Stevens ... (Wikipedia)

  28. Tender Is the Night

    by F. Scott Fitzgerald
    A young couple's tumultuous journey through love, wealth and tragedy.

    Dick and Nicole Diver are a glamorous couple who rent a villa in the South of France and surround themselves with a circle of friends, mainly Americans. Also staying at the nearby resort are Rosemary ... (Wikipedia)

  29. The Magus

    by John Fowles
    A man's search for truth, enlightenment and freedom amid a web of deception.

    The story reflects the perspective of Nicholas Urfe, a young Oxford graduate and aspiring poet. After graduation, he briefly works as a teacher at a small school, but becomes bored and decides to ... (Wikipedia)

  30. Fathers and Sons

    by Ivan Turgenev
    A story of generational divide, exploring the differences between fathers and sons.

    Arkady Kirsanov has just graduated from the University of Petersburg . He returns with a friend, Bazarov, to his father's modest estate in an outlying province of Russia. His father, Nikolay, gladly ... (Wikipedia)