Rating: 
Summary: A Sensitive Roadmap
Review: Although many of Robert Frost's poems revolve around traditionally American themes, even a European, like I am, can easily recognize his genius.This biography offers a major reassessment of the life and work of America's premier poet--the only truly "National Poet" the U.S. has, so far, produced. Author Jay Parini began working on this biography in 1975, through interviews with friends and associates of Frost's and working in the poet's archives at Dartmouth, Amherst and elsewhere. In prose that is both elegant and simple, Parini traces the stages of Frost's colorful life: his boyhood in San Francisco (no, he was not a native New Englander!), his young manhood in New England, his college days at Dartmouth and later at Harvard, his years of farming in New Hampshire, his three-year stay in England where he became friends with people such as Ezra Pound, Edward Thomas and other important figures of modern poetry. Following Frost's meteoric rise upon his return to America from England in 1915, Parini traces the path Frost took from poet to cultural icon, a friend and intimate of presidents, a sage whose pronouncements attracted the attention of the world press. Yet, the beauty of this book lies in the fact that Parini never loses sight of Frost at his deepest and most human, the man behind the gorgeous and sensitive poetry that enraptured a nation. Always managing to take us back to the poetry and Frost's roots, Parini, in this beautiful book, offers a sensitive roadmap of both Frost, the man and his incredible talent.
Rating:
Summary: Terrific!
Review: I am not a fan of biographies...as a New Englander, I AM extremely fond of Frost...so I gave the biography a try... Through a poet's eye...sensitively (and beautifully) written...engaging...a delight!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent piece of work by a professional
Review: I am VERY glad that I got this biography because it is written in a very professional manner. The author was able to resisted the big temptation to 'invent' his own Robert Frost. Different perspectives are revealed and an attempt is made to put extremes into perspective. Though the excursions into poem-analysis at first appeared a little distractive I found it soon to be very interesting and helpful. It taught me actually some helpful lessons. I recommend this book highly to everyone who likes to understand the favorite poet better. I hope Jay Parini continues to write some great books.
Rating: 
Summary: Bringing Dark Foliage On
Review: I have just finished Jay Parini's biography on Robert Frost, hauntingly titled "Robert Frost: A Life." (I guess "Robert Frost: A Book" was already taken.) Let me begin by saying that I have never loved Frost's poetry, despite it's dark brilliance and Yankiness, it has never given me much pleasure. It is as if despite the vague and glorious promises, I have missed some great prize. Similarly, I don't enjoy Emily Dickinson because her poems are like reading someone else's mail. So then Frost's poems are like reading mail from Ed McMahon. Biography, Mr. Parini argues, is not like science that is verifiably right or wrong; instead, one must find the "mythos," or story, that can be composed from the facts. Mr. Parini says he has tried to glean from Frost's life a fresh mythos that is not an attempt to "supplant or overtake previous biographers and critics but merely to add a significant layer." His book then is not a shoot from Frost's critical canon, but a new, internal ring. Reading Mr. Parini's book I get the sense that he's filling in gaps-attempting to step, if possible, where others haven't on a road more traveled. It's a difficult dance he does and the finished product isn't nearly as comprehensive as it should be for almost 460 pages; by fighting on two fronts (the poems and the biography) Mr. Parini manages to advance arguments for either, little. As a corrective to earlier Frost criticism that he was a "monster" in his private life there is much evidence offered here that Frost looked after his children (at least financially) for most of their abbreviated and tormented lives. But why they were afflicted by mental illness is not explored. "Bad luck," Frost would call it in a letter to a friend. Yes indeed, Daddy Dearest.
Rating:
Summary: A Sensitive Roadmap
Review: Jay Parini bring's a poet's perspective to this excellent biography. By combining a compelling look at Frost's life with an informed commentary on his poetry, Parini has avoided the common pitfall of many biographers; forgetting the work while describing the life. I feel I now have a much greater understanding of the man and his work after reading this book which should be the goal of all biographies and so rarely is.
Rating:
Summary: A balanced view of a teacher, poet, friend, and family man.
Review: Jay Parini's well-written and well-organized life of Robert Frost weaves together beautifully the many contradictory Frosts: the spiteful yet respectful colleague, the insensitive yet devoted husband, the domineering yet supportive father, the bullying yet challenging teacher. What we have as a result is a definitive picture of one of our country's greatest poets as a three-dimensional human being, a man of great passions and great talent. As if that weren't good enough, Parini does a magnificent job of showing how many of Frost's best poems fit into periods of his life, how they often reflect his successes and failures, his dreams and his fears. In brief, this is a superlative biography, a must read for anyone curious about the life of this powerful and important poet!
Rating:
Summary: Robert Frost: A Man and his Poems
Review: One of my first memories of Robert Frost is watching him attempting to read a poem he had written for John F. Kennedy's Presidential Inauguration. Struggling with the bright sunlight reflecting off the fresh snow on that crisp winter's day, he abandoned his effort to recite an older poem from memory. I remember thinking the image of this short, stocky white-haired old man was as close to a wood nymph as I would ever come. Later, I was to learn that Frost lead anything but a simple life. Biographer drawing on this image, often sensationalized the details of his life at the expense of the precious poetry he created. Jay Parini, the Axinn Professor of English at Middlebury College, does not travel that path. Rather, he provides his readers with insight into how Frost lived day-to-day, poem to poem. He animates Frost's daily struggles with depression, anxiety, self-doubt and confusion. The poet's family life was not happy; he experienced bad luck with his children. Yet, he exhibited tremendous force of will, love for his children and dedication to creating a lasting body of creative work. Unlike Frost previous biographers, Parini skillfully weaves the details of the poet's life with poetry he created. Frost's desire to "lodge a few poems where they can't be gotten rid of easily" is woven into a picture of an artist attempting to rescue his sanity by creating what he called a "momentary stay against confusion." For me, reading Frost's poetry is a labor of love; reading Parini's biography is like reliving a best friend's life. This biographical study offers an unusual glimpse into the life, poetry and times of Robert Frost, a man who ranks as one of the world's greatest poets.
Rating:
Summary: Robert Frost: A Man and his Poems
Review: One of my first memories of Robert Frost is watching him attempting to read a poem he had written for John F. Kennedy's Presidential Inauguration. Struggling with the bright sunlight reflecting off the fresh snow on that crisp winter's day, he abandoned his effort to recite an older poem from memory. I remember thinking the image of this short, stocky white-haired old man was as close to a wood nymph as I would ever come. Later, I was to learn that Frost lead anything but a simple life. Biographer drawing on this image, often sensationalized the details of his life at the expense of the precious poetry he created. Jay Parini, the Axinn Professor of English at Middlebury College, does not travel that path. Rather, he provides his readers with insight into how Frost lived day-to-day, poem to poem. He animates Frost's daily struggles with depression, anxiety, self-doubt and confusion. The poet's family life was not happy; he experienced bad luck with his children. Yet, he exhibited tremendous force of will, love for his children and dedication to creating a lasting body of creative work. Unlike Frost previous biographers, Parini skillfully weaves the details of the poet's life with poetry he created. Frost's desire to "lodge a few poems where they can't be gotten rid of easily" is woven into a picture of an artist attempting to rescue his sanity by creating what he called a "momentary stay against confusion." For me, reading Frost's poetry is a labor of love; reading Parini's biography is like reliving a best friend's life. This biographical study offers an unusual glimpse into the life, poetry and times of Robert Frost, a man who ranks as one of the world's greatest poets.
Rating: 
Summary: sympathetic to the poet, empathic to the poetry
Review: Robert Frost has long been my favorite poet. I have read all previous biographies of him and , in my opinion, this book stands head and shoulders above them all. It presents an intensely fair and complete account of the man, his life, and his works. Moreover, it is uniquely compassionate in its evaluation of a flawed genius who "had a lover's quarrel with the world". Frost had talked about the "art of locality" and he exemplified this in his faithful depiction of hardscrabble, ordinary, farming life in rural New England. I feel Frost never hit a false note in his poetry and Jay Parini never hit a false note in his biography. Parini, a writer of excellent fiction, stated in a conclusion at the end of his book that he hated completing his labor of love. I felt the same way in finishing my reading of the book-I was sorry to see it come to an end!
Rating:
Summary: I think this is the best of all biographies of Robert Frost.
Review: Robert Frost has long been my favorite poet. I have read all previous biographies of him and , in my opinion, this book stands head and shoulders above them all. It presents an intensely fair and complete account of the man, his life, and his works. Moreover, it is uniquely compassionate in its evaluation of a flawed genius who "had a lover's quarrel with the world". Frost had talked about the "art of locality" and he exemplified this in his faithful depiction of hardscrabble, ordinary, farming life in rural New England. I feel Frost never hit a false note in his poetry and Jay Parini never hit a false note in his biography. Parini, a writer of excellent fiction, stated in a conclusion at the end of his book that he hated completing his labor of love. I felt the same way in finishing my reading of the book-I was sorry to see it come to an end!
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