My first nomination is to read selected poems by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882). It is easy to find various editions of his poetry in all countries. I was inspired to nominate Longfellow's poetry because I just read a historical fiction book by Jennifer Chiaverini about the poem "Christmas Bells," which became the basis of the carol "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day." I was really fascinated by the biographical details of his life, including multiple sad family tragedies, and the time period in which he lived being in the Boston area during the Civil War.
Here is an example edition of Evangeline and Other Selected Poems that appears available for everyone.
https://www.amazon.com/Evangeline-Ot...dp/B0030MTPV0/
Here is Longfellow's biography from Goodreads:
Quote:
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and "Evangeline". He was also the first American to translate Dante Alighieri's The Divine Comedy and was one of the five members of the group known as the Fireside Poets.
Longfellow was born in Portland, Maine and studied at Bowdoin College. After spending time in Europe he became a professor at Bowdoin and, later, at Harvard College. His first major poetry collections were Voices of the Night (1839) and Ballads and Other Poems (1842). Longfellow retired from teaching in 1854 to focus on his writing, though he lived the remainder of his life in Cambridge, Massachusetts in a former headquarters of George Washington.
Longfellow predominantly wrote lyric poetry, known for its musicality, which often presented stories of mythology and legend. He became the most popular American poet of his day and also had success overseas. He has been criticized, however, for imitating European styles and writing specifically for the masses.
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