SKU: 33221574885

Opal Sunset: Selected Poems, 1958-2008

Sale price$16.06 Regular price$17.84
Save 10%

Pay in installments of $4.46 with ShopPay, AfterPay and Klarna

Shipping Estimate
USA
  • USA
  • CAN

Ships within 48 hours · Estimated delivery Jul 20 - Jul 25

Promo Codes Available:

For Your Every Summer RSVP, with Code: SUMMER15

Description

Opal Sunset: Selected Poems, 1958-2008Opal Sunset marks the exuberant introduction of Clive James's poetry to an American audience. Praised after the publication of Cultural Amnesia as one of the finest prose stylists of his generation, Clive James is now, with the publication of this collection, being granted recognition as the poet he has always been. For much of his long career it was hard to realize that James's gift for poetry underlay his achievements in other fields. First as a

Opal Sunset marks the exuberant introduction of Clive James's poetry to an American audience.

Praised after the publication of Cultural Amnesia as one of the finest prose stylists of his generation, Clive James is now, with the publication of this collection, being granted recognition as the poet he has always been.

For much of his long career it was hard to realize that James's gift for poetry underlay his achievements in other fields. First as a television critic on Fleet Street, and later as a television personality in his own right, he achieved such fame for writing the way he spoke that his poetry was regarded as an idiosyncratic sideline, as if no celebrity could write worthy verse. A conundrum presented itself: how could a serious poet also be a television star? But for James, a duty to the discipline of verse was always fundamental, and his accumulated poetic output became impossible to ignore.

As early as the 1970s, James's long, mock epic "Peregrine Prykke's Pilgrimage through the London Literary World" received almost unprecedented attention in his adopted England, while later, his satirical short poem "The Book of My Enemy Has Been Remaindered" became not only a standard verse quoted at fancy dinner parties but entered the culture as lines to be memorized by unpublished writers everywhere. James was suddenly in the odd position of having written famous poems well before he became a famous poet. Finally, the publication of a volume of his collected verse, The Book of My Enemy, earned him in 2003 the reputation as a serious poet that he has long deserved.

Less inhibited by fixed categories, a new generation of critics has confirmed what James's public has instinctively known, that he brings his poems to life with all the resources to be found in his prose: wit, imagination, social observation, and a dazzling play of language. In addition, his poems have an unmistakably characteristic rhythm that makes it compulsory to read them aloud. Switching between strict stanzas and free forms as the occasion suits, James brings a compulsively readable coherence to either mode; and always, over and above the binding force of his metrical assurance, there is a lyricism that brings even the plainest statement to extra life, and which often enters deeply into realms of human emotion. His later poems about the tragedy that struck his mother and father, for example, show an intensity of regret that mark his maturity as a poet and bring out his unashamed nostalgia for his homeland, Australia.

Opal Sunset is a treasure chamber of epigrammatic jewels to which the reader will return again and again.

Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Published: 03/01/2010
ISBN: 9780393337358
Pages: 204
Weight: 0.69lbs
Size: 8.94h x 6.56w x 0.61d
Shipping Notes
  • Free Standard Shipping on $100+ Orders to the USA.
  • Except Preorder products are shipped in 48 hours.
  • Delivery to the USA:
  1. Standard Shipping : 3-10 business days
  • If time is of the essence, please consider selecting expedited delivery for faster service.
Exchange/Return Notes
  • We offer a 30-day return/exchange service after receiving.
  • Final sale items are not eligible for returns or exchanges.
  • To process your return/exchange, please contact us at [email protected]
  • Please click here for more details>>> Return & Exchange Policy
SKU: 33221574885

Discover Niche Categories That Outsell

Top-Converting Item to Boost Your Average Order

4.4 ★★★★★
Based on 18 reviews
Sort
Highest Rating
Newest First
Oldest First
Product Reviews
V
Verified Purchase
Valhalla49
Charlottesville, US
★★★★★ 5
When they said strong...
...they weren't kidding. Our pup would chew through everything she could get her sharks teeth into. Like my arms. Nothing lasted as long as a week or maybe two. But she has had Dino for months now. She loves him. He is the go to toy for when she wants to play tug. The material used to make this toy is every bit as strong as the seller claims. I will definitely buy from them again. And I will not wait for this one to rip. I may be waiting a long time. If your pup likes to tear stuff apart, feel safe in buying this toy, UPDATE: 2/9/2023 Dino finally succumbed to the torture. His back ripped open and despite trying to repair him with ordinary thread he couldn't withstand the pressure, His stuffing was removed and spread all over the living room. Completely emptied he is still a good toy. Strong enough to withstand the forceful play of tug-o-war. Only thing I would suggest is to use something stronger when closing his back. The rest of him is great. I will be replacing him soon.
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2023
R
Verified Purchase
Rachel
Boise, US
★★★★★ 4
Not so tough
Size: Mini, Color: Gator (Pink)
I bought this because I dog sit. The dog chews up every. Single. Toy. So I bought it since it was cheap and it can be in the “chunk” (the dog’s name) toy box. It is not durable at all. He tore it up just as fast as a cheaply made toy. Chunk LOVES it! He would not stop playing with it. He loves the squeakers, it is a perfect size for him to throw it up in the air and chase it, and he loved ripping the legs off. It is good for my husband and I because there is little to no fluff. However, it is the perfect size to drop behind the couch and not be able to get. So once he drops it behind the couch, he won’t get it until morning. Now for my dog’s rating. My dog loves this toy too. He is much more gentle with toys (he has $5 Walmart toys we bought him back in 2020 in perfect condition that he plays with them every day). Before Chunk came over for the weekend, my dog Ted played with this. Ted is a larger small dog and chunk is a smaller small dog. And it is still the perfect size for both dogs.
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on April 26, 2026
S
Verified Purchase
Scott T
Battle Creek, US
★★★★★ 5
Tough
Size: Large, Color: Dinos Frills (Pink)
Tough dog toy that's held up through multiple washes! My dogs love the squeaker. They are not destructive chewers so I can't really say how it would hold up with that kind of dog though.
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2026
O
Verified Purchase
ocd_reader
Lake Worth, US
★★★★★ 5
Cute and well made my dogs love it.
Size: Mini, Color: Gator (Pink)
Cute little toy definatly for small toy sized dogs. This toy is bright and colorful and well made. My little dog likes it very much and tosses it around all the time. Great toy for fetch.
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2026
M
Verified Purchase
MW
Massapequa, US
★★★★★ 1
Squeaker inside toy breaks after 2 days
Size: Mini, Color: Gator (Pink)
Bought for my 8 lb chihuahua for Christmas. I have 3 little girls. The youngest loves her toys and of course she took this one over immediately. She just loved everything about it. The material on the gator is amazingly durable and I believe would hold up for a good while. The squeaker inside the toy however, broke after 2 days of my girl playing with it. It's now a noiseless toy that she does not like too much as it does not squeak because it only had the one squeaker in it. I would recommend that 2 squeakers be inserted into this gator. I would not purchase again due to the longevity of the squeaker...only lasted 2 days.
WAS THIS REVIEW HELPFUL?YesReportShare
Reviewed in the United States on January 5, 2026

recommand products