The Anchor Book of Chinese Poetry

Starred review from February 1, 2005
This small book accounts for most of Chinese poetry, from the 12th century B.C.E. to the present. Some 40 pages are devoted to an excellent description of Chinese prosody, although some discussion of ancient meter will be lost on those who do not know Chinese. Helpful indexes and tables give the alternate spellings in different transliteration systems (Tu Fu is Du Fu; Mao Tse-tung is Mao Zedong). The chronologically sequenced translations begin with the Zhou dynasty (1122-256 B.C.E.) and continue through the present, with each dynasty and poet introduced with historical background and biographies. More than 1000 poems by 125 poets are included. Many of the poems are translated by editors Barnstone (creative writing & American literature, Whittier Coll.) and Ping (Coll. of Wooster), with others by well-known translators such as Mabel Lee and Burton Watson, as well as earlier translators Willis Barnstone and Arthur Waley. This monumental work should be in all public and academic libraries.-Kitty Chen Dean, Nassau Coll., Garden City, NY

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