What has happened to the lost art of memorizing poems? Why do we no longer feel it's necessary to have the most timeless and beautiful poems of the English language "pinned" in our memory? In his introduction, Ted Hughes explains how we can overcome this problem by using a memory system that becomes easier the more it is practiced. The 101 poems collected are personal favorites as well as particularly suitable for the method Hughes demonstrates. Covering four centuries, from Shakespeare and Keats to Thorney and Seamus Heaney, "By Heart" offers the reader a "mental gym" where memory can be exercised and trained in the most enjoyable way. Some poems will be more difficult than others, but all will be loved once they become part of our memory. This edition is part of a series of anthologies curated by poets such as Don Paterson and Simon Armitage and features an attractive new design that complements an anthology of classic poems.