Research Guides: How To Find...: Poetry

Poetry in the Library

Books of poetry and periodicals that include poems may be found by searching in the library catalog. Using the advanced search function is the most efficient way to run these searches.

To find poetry books by a specific person, put the author's name in the search bar, then set the search field to say author/creator. Once you run your search, you can filter your results to poetry books.

If you do not have a specific book in mind, you can set the search field for subject and look for a specific area of poetry, for example "American Poetry."

Poetry books may be called collections of poems or anthologies of poems as well. Anthologies usually have poems by several authors in them.

For more information about advanced searching, check out our searching tips help guide.

Lit-Finder This link opens in a new window
Offers access to more than 135,000 full-text poems, stories, plays and more as well as biographies, essays and explanations.

Poetry Online

Library of Congress Poetry & Literature Audio Recordings
The Library of Congress's Poetry and Literature Program includes recordings of poets and writers who have participated in literary events.
The Poetry Archive
From The Poetry Archive
"The Poetry Archive is the only charity wholly dedicated to the production, acquisition and preservation of recordings of significant poets reading their work aloud."
Poetry Foundation
The Poetry Foundation has a massive collection of poems that can be read for free. They also publish Poetry magazine, share essays about poetry, and create video and podcast resources.
The Poetry Project Library Page
The Poetry Project is based out of St. Mark's Church in New York City. They have been celebrating poetry and hosting poetry readings for several decades.
Poets.org
Poets.org is run by the American Academy of Poets. They provide a fantastic collection of poems, spearhead National Poetry Month festivities, and publish American Poets magazine.
St. Mark's Poetry Project Audio Archive
An audio archive of poetry recorded by The Poetry Project.