The Daily Poem

David Kern

An audio anthology of the best poetry ever written

  • 5 minutes 16 seconds
    William Shakespeare's "Sonnet 99"

    Today’s poem is one of Shakespeare’s “irregular” sonnets–he’s got 99 problems (most of them flowers), but strict obedience to the requirements of the sonnet form ain’t one. Happy reading.



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    6 April 2026, 12:59 pm
  • 6 minutes 14 seconds
    Nicholas Samaras' "The Second Death of Lazarus"

    Today’s poem imagines the long life of Lazarus as he awaits, like Eliot’s magi, “another death.” Happy reading.



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    3 April 2026, 2:01 pm
  • 2 minutes 35 seconds
    Sean Johnson's "How many beards gild the lapses of time"

    Today’s poem is a hirsute parody of a much better poem. Sorry in advance. Happy reading.



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    1 April 2026, 4:10 pm
  • 5 minutes 3 seconds
    Elizabeth Drew Barstow Stoddard's "One morn I left him in his bed"

    In the 19th century, poems about the loss of children became a little genre of their own. Today’s poem is a decidedly uncharacteristic example of the form.



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe
    30 March 2026, 6:23 pm
  • 5 minutes 27 seconds
    Seamus Heaney's "Poem"

    Today’s poem answers the question you never thought to ask: what do a poem, a barnyard, and a marriage have in common? Happy reading.



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    27 March 2026, 7:37 pm
  • 3 minutes 16 seconds
    Rainer Maria Rilke's "Annunciation to Mary"

    In today’s poem, Rilke (trans. J.B. Leishman) imagines the Annunciation from Gabriel’s perspective. Happy reading.



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    25 March 2026, 4:06 pm
  • 4 minutes 41 seconds
    Frances Ellen Watkins Harper's "Dandelions"

    Today’s poem wonders what it means to recognize and appreciate a gift. Happy reading.



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    23 March 2026, 5:00 pm
  • 3 minutes 48 seconds
    Naomi Shihab Nye's "My Uncle’s Favorite Coffee Shop"

    Today’s poem contemplates the ways and “why”s of saying nothing, before culminating in a shattering pun on “nothing.” Happy reading.



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    20 March 2026, 1:00 pm
  • 5 minutes 15 seconds
    W. H. Auden's "Funeral Blues"

    Today’s poem began its life as a bit of black humor, but lives on as a raw and relatable expression of real grief. Happy reading.



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe
    18 March 2026, 4:01 pm
  • 4 minutes 6 seconds
    Thomas Hardy's "During Wind and Rain"

    Today’s poem juxtaposes scenes of summer warmth to scenes of torrential bluster with a seamlessness that would make the best film editor jealous. Happy reading.



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe
    16 March 2026, 4:13 pm
  • 5 minutes 49 seconds
    William Carlos Williams' "Love Song"

    Today’s poem captures the agonies and ecstacies of thinking about the absent beloved. Happy reading.



    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dailypoempod.substack.com/subscribe
    13 March 2026, 6:17 pm
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