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Poetry is a seriously underrated genre of literature. I feel like The Iliad and The Odyssey being on high school reading lists is partially to blame. Honestly, if that was the first poetry I was ever introduced to, I would really hate poetry!

Audre Lorde, a Black lesbian poet, wrote “Poetry is the way we help give name to the nameless so it can be thought.” Poetry tells the story of things that are big and true, and that can’t be described with everyday language. We need poetry to help us understand the world.

It makes sense if you find poetry boring or intimidating, because there are a lot of academic people who gatekeep poetry, in my opinion. I once attended a talk where a bunch of poetry professors argued that “Instagram poetry” isn’t real poetry. I hated hearing that because poetry is beautiful and should be for everyone.

Too many people think they just “don’t like poetry” because they’ve been introduced it in ways that are dry, boring, or told there is a right or a wrong way to interpret it.

I’m excited to share a list of poetry audiobooks that can help you have a new and positive experience with poems. Maybe you’ll love it, maybe you’ll hate it! But poetry is the underdog of literature, and doesn’t make it onto enough reading lists. So I hope you find a poetry audiobook on this list that you are excited to try.

This post shares a variety of Audible poetry books you can add to your reading list and enjoy.

I’m going to answer a few questions about Audible and poetry audiobooks first, so feel free to jump ahead if you want to go straight to the Audible poetry book recommendations.

Poetry Audiobooks

About Audiobooks

Where can I listen to poetry audiobooks?

In this list of reading recommendations, I’m sharing links to Audible poetry audiobooks, because I currently use Audible. However, you can look for audiobooks at your local library with tools like Libby. There are also other audiobook listening platforms like Libro.fm you can look for audiobooks on.

Is listening to an audiobook the same as reading?

Absolutely, listening to audiobooks counts as reading! I actually prefer listening to audiobooks over reading books. I really enjoy hearing a good narrator, especially if it’s the author narrating their own book. Your brain also functions the same way when reading printed words and listening to words being spoken, which you can read more about on Science Daily, if you’re interested.

Why should I listen to poetry on audiobook?

I love listening to poetry audiobooks! While I enjoy reading too, there’s something special about hearing poetry read out loud. A lot of poetry audiobooks are also narrated by the author. This is great because an author knows their work the best, and hearing them narrate a book helps me understand and feel more connected to their writing.

Getting Audiobooks Through Audible

You can purchase an Audible audiobook directly, or use an Audible membership to listen to audiobooks. You don’t have to have a monthly membership though to get audiobooks from Audible!

Does it cost to listen to Audible books?

There are a few books that are free for anyone to listen to on Audible, but you will typically either have to purchase an audiobook or have an Audible membership to listen.

If you want, you can get an Audible free trial for your first month of listening on Audible. You can also gift an Audible membership!

Personally, I like subscribing to an audiobook membership like Audible because I like pausing and coming back to books when I feel like it. I have ADHD, so when I check out audiobooks from the library, and re-check them out, it doesn’t save my place. Then I usually give up on reading that book because it feels overwhelming to figure out where I was in the book. Of course, it’s up to you if you want to listen to your audiobooks on Audible, another audiobook platform, or through your library!

Best Audible Poetry Books

Here are my poetry audiobook recommendations! I included mostly contemporary poetry audiobooks because that’s what I find new poetry readers can connect to and enjoy. I also tried to select books that were at least 1 hour long for this list, because if you’re going to purchase an audiobook or use an Audible credit, I want it to be worth it. Happy reading!

If you’ve read any of these poetry audiobooks or give one a try after reading my recommendations, I’d love for you to leave a comment!

1. Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur

milk and honey

You’ve probably seen Rupi Kaur’s poetry around Instagram! If you haven’t, she wrotes short but meaningful poems about heartache and healing and everything in between.

She also has a poetry special on Prime Video!

Rupi narrates her own audiobook, milk and honey, and her voice is smooth and peaceful. I love her poetry because it’s both deeply powerful and easy to read or listen to.

2. Invisible Strings: 113 Poets Respond to the Songs of Taylor Swift

Invisible Strings: 113 Poets Respond to the Songs of Taylor Swift

This poetry audiobook is for the Swifties! I didn’t start listening to a lot of Taylor Swift music until The Tortured Poets Department came out, and then became obsessed with her album Reputation and some of her other music. Actually, it’s really fitting for a poetry book to come out after TTPD!

Invisible Strings features 113 poems from different poets all about different Taylor Swift songs. This would be such a fun poetry audiobook to listen to, especially if you are super familiar with her music, to see what connections you can make from the poems to her songs.

3. Call Us What We Carry: Poems by Amanda Gorman

Call Us What We Carry: Poems

You may remember Amanda Gorman reading her poem, “The Hill We Climb,” at Joe Biden’s inauguration.

“Our scars are the brightest parts of us”
– Amanda Gorman, Call Us What We Carry

In this book of poems, she shares her feelings about climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, and white supremacy.

4. All Along You Were Blooming: Thoughts for Boundless Living by Morgan Harper Nichols

All Along You Were Blooming: Thoughts for Boundless Living

I LOVE Morgan Harper Nichols! Her words and art are so beautiful and touching. I’ve followed her on Instagram for a while and love that she has also published poetry books like this one.

This book can lean more spiritual so keep that in mind if you’re considering reading it. Even if you’re not spiritual, I think anyone can take inspiration and feel hopeful listening to her poetry.

5. The Wonder of Small Things: Poems of Peace and Renewal

The Wonder of Small Things: Poems of Peace and Renewal

Want to explore a poetry collection instead of a book of poems all by one individual author? If you are new to poetry, I recommend trying some anthologies like this one to help you get introduced to different poets and styles of poetry.

The Wonder of Small Things is a poetry anthology with poems from a diverse range of writers. Themes include mindful living and finding joy in the little things.

I love how this poetry collection has moments of “reflective pause” in between some of the poems that encourages you to think and reflect on what you are reading.

6. Lord of the Butterflies by Andrea Gibson

Lord of the Butterflies

Andrew Gibson is a queer poet who uses they/them pronouns. They often perform their poems with Button Poetry.

“Do you ever feel like the best of you is something you’re still hoping to grow into?”
– Andrea Gibson, Lord of the Butterflies

In this poetry book, they write about love, loss, mental health, identity, and more.

7. Nikki Giovanni: Love Poems and A Good Cry

Nikki Giovanni: Love Poems and A Good Cry: What We Learn from Tears and Laughter

The writer of this audiobook, Nikki Giovanni, passed away in December 2024. She was a beloved poet and author. She won many awards during her life and was even nominated for a Grammy Award for her poetry in the spoken word category.

This poetry collection spans a range of emotion. If you want to hear poetry from a much loved American poet, give this book a try.

8. Devotions: The Selected Poems of Mary Oliver

Devotions: The Selected Poems of Mary Oliver

I absolutely adore Mary Oliver! (Actually my cat Oliver is named after her too!) I highly recommend Mary Oliver poems for anyone who feels like the language of poetry is too intimidating.

She writes about life and nature, and anyone could pick up her poems and connect with them.

If you are looking for simple poems that are easy to understand but have deep meaning, this is the poetry audiobook for you.

9. When I Grow Up I Want to Be a List of Further Possibilities

When I Grow Up I Want to Be a List of Further Possibilities

This poetry audiobook made me feel things. I love the rhythm of these poems and the way Chen Chen sounds both calm and full of momentum and energy when narrating them.

In these poems, the author talks about life and family from an Asian American, immigrant, and queer lens.

If you are someone who listens to music for the rhythm and how it sounds, I recommend adding this poetry audiobook to your reading list! The words are meaningful too, although more poetic and full of metaphor. But this audiobook really shines with the flow and rhythm of the words.

10. Inward by Yung Pueblo

Inward

The poetry of Yung Pueblo can change your life. Inward is a book full of deep thoughts and wisdom that will bring you closer to loving yourself.

One of my greatest mistakes was believing that another person could hold together all the pieces of me.
– Yung Pueblo, Inward

With short poems about self love, healing and personal growth, this is a transformative book of poetry worth checking out.

11. Danger on Peaks by Gary Snyder

Danger on Peaks

Gary Snyder is a poet from the Beat Generation. The Beat Poets wrote in the 1950s and 60s and were known for poetry with a rhythm that sounds like jazz.

The poems in this book are full of adventure and history and visual imagery of nature. Listening to Danger on Peaks makes me feel like I’m in the mountains.

Gary Snyder is also known for being a Zen Buddhist and his poems feel mediative at times as well.

12. Femme in Public: Poetry by ALOK

Femme in Public: Poetry by ALOK

Alok Vaid-Menon is really an icon to me. They are a gender non-conforming poet and comedian who has spoken loudly about being trans and nonbinary in powerful ways.

This is a short collection of poems about their experience presenting femme in public, as the title suggests. It is also a bit nontraditional of an audiobook due to the unique use of sound.

13. Bone by Yrsa Daley-Ward

Bone

Ysra Daley-Ward is a model turned poet, and poetry was how she started speaking the truth about her life – you can read more about her journey into poetry in The Guardian.

This book of poetry is about identity, trauma, mental health, life, growing up Black and British, and more.

It’s not the type of poetry book that is easily quotable, but it is very raw and real. It tells personal stories and experiences in poems with powerful emotion that brings you into her world.

14. An American Sunrise: Poems by Joy Harjo

An American Sunrise: Poems

Joy Harjo was the first Native American to be United States Poet Laureate!

In An American Sunrise, she shares about her own family’s history and also about the forcible removal of Indigenous peoples from their homelands.

“We cannot own anyone else, people, the lands, or resources. We are here to care for each other.”
– Joy Harjo, An American Sunrise

15. Heart Talk: Poetic Wisdom for a Better Life

Heart Talk: Poetic Wisdom for a Better Life

While this book is technically poetic wisdom as opposed to straight poetry, I think it’s close enough to count.

Heart Talk is such a beautiful, hopeful book. It covers topics like accepting change, self care, and believing in yourself. I have the physical book and it’s nice to flip through to random pages. But I think the audiobook would be the perfect dose of encouragement to listen to on tough days.

Now you’ve got 15 Audible poetry books to add to your reading list! I hope you give at least one of them a try, because I think everyone can use a little more poetry in their life.

This post was all about the best poetry books you can find on Audible!

The post 15 Inspiring Audible Poetry Books to Transform Your Reading List appeared first on The Honey Side.