ASHBERY-ESQUE: Adventures in Cataloging the John Ashbery Reading Library

"Cataloging John Ashbery’s book collection has been a massive undertaking. At least it has been for me, the English Department grad student who, book by book, leaves through the foxed pages that frame the background of Ashbery’s rich literary life. After processing over 2,500 books from his library in a mere nine months—roughly half of the collection, which was generously donated to the Poetry Roomby David Kermani—Ashbery’s archived books have revealed some fascinating things about him, his peers, and maybe even about myself. ... 1. Self-Portrait as a Comprehensive Collector. One of the first lessons gleaned from the library is that Ashbery diligently collected some authors’ work to completion. A bookworm since his time at Harvard in the 1940s, John sought his own copies of collections by beloved influences like Marianne Moore and W. H. Auden, and he closely followed the decades-spanning careers of such friends as Kenneth Koch and James Schuyler. ..."

Woodberry Poetry Room