Nautical poetry in the Bay State

The snow is gone, the chills are past. It's summertime in New England, with long, breezy days beckoning a quiet respite from work, school, and frenzied activity. When you saunter off to your favorite seaside resort, consider browsing through a book or two of poetry as you twiddle your toes in the sand and gaze away at the maritime vista. In many ways, poems are preferable to novels for beachtime reading since books can be so engrossing that one barely looks up to appreciate the natural surroundings. (Unless, of course, you relish being taken away to another world when you've just escaped your own.) Either way, reading a bit of nautical poetry can rouse the imagination and enhance the atmosphere, and few do it better than the Bay State bards.

I'd like to propose a seven course sampling of delectable reading from poets who were born, or spent the better part of their lives, in Massachusetts.