The Concise Verse

Recent Episodes

"Dooryard Roses" by Sara Teasdale
42
July 12, 2026

"Dooryard Roses" by Sara Teasdale

I HAVE come the selfsame path To the selfsame door, Years have left the roses there Burning as before. While I watch them in the wind Quick the hot tears start— Strange so frail a flame outlasts Fire in the heart.
"Moon-Shadows" by Adelaide Crapsey
41
July 5, 2026

"Moon-Shadows" by Adelaide Crapsey

Still as On windless nights The moon-cast shadows are, So still will be my heart when I Am dead.
"Suicide's Note" by Langston Hughes
40
June 28, 2026

"Suicide's Note" by Langston Hughes

The calm, Cool face of the river Asked me for a kiss.
"A Jelly-Fish" by Marianne Moore
39
June 21, 2026

"A Jelly-Fish" by Marianne Moore

Visible, invisible, A fluctuating charm, An amber-colored amethyst Inhabits it; your arm Approaches, and It opens and It closes; You have meant To catch it, And it shrivels; You abandon Your intent— It opens, and it Closes and you Reach for it— The blue Surrounding it Grows cloudy, and It floats away From you.
"The Net of Law" by James Jeffrey Roche
38
June 14, 2026

"The Net of Law" by James Jeffrey Roche

The net of law is spread so wide, No sinner from its sweep may hide. Its meshes are so fine and strong, They take in every child of wrong. O wondrous web of mystery! Big fish alone escape from thee!
"Nothing Gold Can Stay" by Robert Frost
37
June 7, 2026

"Nothing Gold Can Stay" by Robert Frost

Nature’s first green is gold, Her hardest hue to hold. Her early leaf’s a flower; But only so an hour. Then leaf subsides to leaf. So Eden sank to grief, So dawn goes down to day. Nothing gold can stay.

Recent Blog Posts

The Pain of Remembrance: Sara Teasdale's  "Dooryard Roses"
July 12, 2026

The Pain of Remembrance: Sara Teasdale's "Dooryard Roses"

First published in 1915 in her celebrated collection Rivers to the Sea, "Dooryard Roses" is a poignant work by Sara Teasdale. Writing during the American Lyric Golden Age, Teasdale (1884–1933) was renowned for her intensely personal, emot…
The Absolute Stillness: Adelaide Crapsey's "Moon-Shadows"
July 5, 2026

The Absolute Stillness: Adelaide Crapsey's "Moon-Shadows"

First published posthumously in 1915, "Moon-Shadows" is a breathtakingly haunting work by Adelaide Crapsey. Best known for inventing the American cinquain—a condensed, five-line poetic form inspired by Japanese haiku—Crapsey (1878&n…
The Calm Face: Langston Hughes's "Suicide's Note"
June 28, 2026

The Calm Face: Langston Hughes's "Suicide's Note"

First published in 1926 in his groundbreaking debut collection The Weary Blues, "Suicide's Note" is a brief, sharp work by Langston Hughes. As a central luminary of the Harlem Renaissance, Hughes was celebrated for capturing the raw emotional landsc…