Collected Poems 1943-2004 - Richard Wilbur

This comprehensive collection presents new and never published poems by Richard Wilbur, author of 17 poetry collections, four children's books, and numerous works in prose and translations. \nOne of the most honored poets of 20th-century American verse, Richard Wilbur won both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award for his poetry. \n \nWith a distinguished career spanning more than sixty years, Richard Wilbur stands as one of America's preeminent men of letters. Collected Poems 1943-2004 is the comprehensive collection of Wilbur's astonishing, timeless work. It will serve as the most referenced trove of this beloved poet's best verses for many years to come. \n \nIn Trackless Woods \nIn trackless woods, it puzzled me to find \nFour great rock maples seemingly aligned, \nAs if they had been set out in a row \nBefore some house a century ago, \nTo edge the property and lend some shade. \nI looked to see if ancient wheels had made \nOld ruts to which the trees ran parallel, \nBut there were none, so far as I could tell- \nThere'd been no roadway. Nor could I find the square \nDepression of a cellar anywhere, \nAnd so I tramped on further, to survey \nAmazing patterns in a hornbeam spray \nOr spirals in a pine cone, under trees \nNot subject to our stiff geometries.