Cultural Writing. From one of our most esteemed contemporary poets, a collection of essays about reading and poetics, written over many decades, and touching on many centuries. "We expect poets to give a first-hand account of what poetry is. But some poets, when they write criticism, produce a kind of prose that is itself on the verge of being poetry. Valery, Stevens and Marianne Moore belong to this "visionary company." And so does Barbara Guest, whose writings on poetry, collected here, are among the most inspiring works of their kind. It is a deep pleasure to know that such writing can still exist" --John Ashbery.

One of the most notable members of the New York School and its most prominent woman, Barbara Guest is the author of over twenty books of poetry and fiction. The most recent to appear is The Collected Poems of Barbara Guest (Wesleyan Poetry). Other major works include The Red Gaze (Wesleyan Poetry), FORCES OF IMAGINATION (Kelsey Street Press), Miniatures and Other Poems (Wesleyan Poetry), and SYMBIOSIS (Kelsey Street Press). She was the recipient of numerous awards, including the Frost Medal for Distinguished Lifetime Achievement from the Poetry Society of America.