Reading Poetry

I majored in English literature in college. I read hundreds and perhaps thousands of pages every week, ranging from Beowulf all the way through 21st century literature. I read authors like Hemingway, Beckett, Chaucer, and Austen.

So I would be a natural choice to read poetry, right?

Not so much.

It doesn't occur to me to pick up a poetry book the same way I make lists of novels to devour. But as I started to think about my reading habits in 2015, I decided to work poetry into my book rotation. I'm trying to keep it simple and low-stress, committing to read just one poem a day.

I don't want to be the reader who is intimidated by poetry anymore. I don't want to automatically assume that I won't get it, that there isn't the same kind of payoff from reading a book of poetry that I would get from reading a novel or biography.

So far, I've completed A Thousand Mornings, a book of poetry by Mary Oliver. I am now reading through The Poetry Of Our World, a collection of poems from 20th century poets across the world. I must confess that I had an easy entry into this book. The first poets were Robert Lowell and Elizabeth Bishop, both of whom I studied in a college class. Now I'm wading into new territory, with poets like Octavio Paz from Mexico and Anna Akhmatova of Russia.

I'm learning to read in new ways. I'm getting out of my comfort zone and discovering new writers who spin magic with their words.

Do you read poetry? Do you find it intimidating? Who are your favorite poets?