Great Poems

I approached this audiobook skeptical—how could 50 poems in under 90 minutes avoid feeling rushed or superficial? The answer? By trusting the voices more than the page. Maxine Peake’s reading of Byron’s ‘She Walks in Beauty’ is a masterclass in understatement, her every syllable dripping with sly charm, while Rupert Penry-Jones’ rendition of Tennyson’s ‘Ulysses’ swells with the weight of a man who’s seen too much. My biggest critique? The anthology leans heavily on the usual suspects—Wordsworth, Shelley, Frost—leaving little room for offbeat gems. Still, when Bill Wallis tackles ‘The Tyger,’ his guttural growl turns Blake’s lines into something almost primal. The production is flawless, with no discernible cuts or aural seams, but the brevity of some entries (a swift 90 seconds for a Yeats poem?) left me craving more. If you’re after a quick poetry hit for your commute, this delivers. If you want depth, pair it with another collection. Either way, the performances alone justify the listen.