Later Poems Selected and New: 1971-2012

The final volume of poems assembled by America’s most powerful and distinctive voice.

Adrienne Rich’s Later Poems Selected and New: 1971–2012 displays the strong trajectory of the work of one of the most distinguished artists of American letters. After her death in March 2012, Rich left behind a manuscript of mature work that speaks for her concern with a poetics of relation along with a passionate attention to craft. In addition to her selections from twelve volumes of published work, Later Poems Selected and New contains ten powerful new poems. Among these, “From Strata” is a kind of archaeology of the present day; “Itinerary” searches for an “indefinite future” in a menaced landscape; “For the Young Anarchists” offers a trope of skilled labor for political action; and the haunting voice of the “Teethsucking Bird” reminds us of what we have been told to forget. These and other poems look back into history and forward into the future while engaging with contemporary moments. Rich’s singular command of language continues to the end.