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This week, Riley Rennhack of Deep Vellum Books in Dallas, Texas recommends Ann Carson’s classic nonfiction work “Eros, the Bittersweet,” which was republished this summer by Dalkey Archive Press. 

The book explores the idea that love is bittersweet and that desire is not about having, but wanting. This, Carson says, is the source of poetry. Reworked from Carson’s 1981 PhD thesis, “Eros, the Bittersweet” is a thought-provoking look at 

and desire stemming back to the ancient Greeks that still feels relevant today.

“If you’re heartbroken, or have ever been heartbroken, and you want new language for it, that’s what this book feels like to me,” says Rennhack. 

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Emily Bright

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“Eros, the Bittersweet” explores the idea that love is bittersweet and that desire is not about having, but wanting.

This week, Riley Rennhack of Deep Vellum Books in Dallas, Texas recommends Ann Carson’s classic nonfiction work “Eros, the Bittersweet,” which was republished this summer by Dalkey Archive Press. 

Ask a Bookseller: the poetry of desire

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