All of Us: the Collected Poems

'I began as a poet, my first publication was a poem. So I suppose on my tombstone I'd be very pleased if they put 'Poet and short-story writer -- and occasional essayist' in that order.' Now, in what would have been his 60th year, and 10 years after his death, Raymond Carver's poems -- more than 300 in all -- are collected in this volume, allowing readers to experience their full range and overwhelming cumulative power. This complete edition brings together, in their order of publication, the early poems of "Fires, " the mature work of "Where Water Comes Together" with "Other Water" and "Ultramarine, " and the last, intensely moving collection, "A New Path to the Waterfall." Poems uncollected during his lifetime, but published posthumously in "No Heroics, Please, " are included in an appendix.The text has been edited by Professor William L. Stull of the University of Hartford, whose notes address details of first publication and significant variant readings. The introduction by Tess Gallagher, Mr. Carver's widow, provides valuable insights into his methods of composition. Hailed as our own Chekhov, and certainly the preeminent storyteller of his time, Raymond Carver is revealed in "All of Us" as the 'heir to that most appealing American poetic voice, the lyricism of Theodore Rothke and James Wright' ( "The New York Times" ). And whether in fiction or verse, his heart, craft, and vision ensure his essential position in modern literature.