Poems of Ernest Dowson

The Poems of Ernest Dowson by Ernest Dowson, 123 pages

A Decadent poet of the nineteenth century, Dowson is primarily remembered for his skill at turning a phrase, particularly "the days of wine and roses" and "gone with the wind".  This is a short collection of his poetry (and a short verse play, Pierrot of the Minute), mostly dealing with love disdained, refused, regretted, and remembered.  At its best, his poetry continues the old romantic rejection of the mundane, disdaining the "men who sow and reap, / all their days, vanity", in favor of the monastery or the madhouse.

An short, enjoyable book, well-crafted but not particularly challenging.