Review by Choice Review
Containing 25 reviews and 22 articles, some especially commissioned for this volume, this is a long-overdue first collection of criticism of Millay, not just as poet but also as translator, fiction writer, and playwright. It is extremely useful to have these widely scattered pieces, which span more than 70 years, all together in one volume. They provide in sum a brief history of Millay's critical reputation. The range of commentary is broad--e.g., Maxwell Anderson, Allen Tate, Louise Bogan, John Ciardi, Willard Thorp. Writing in 1918, both Louis Untermeyer and Harriet Monroe immediately recognized Millay's promise as a new writer. In a review of her Collected Poems in 1956, Francis Hackett reaffirms the fulfillment of that promise. The interest of feminist critics and scholars has resulted in an upsurge of attention, producing some of the most perceptive studies of Millay's work in the past 20 years. Indispensable for readers at all levels of Millay's work and 20th-century American poetry in general. J. J. Patton; Atlantic Community College
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
