Edited by Jerome Rothenberg and George Quasha. 
 
New York: Random House, 1973. Octavo. Navy boards with gilt titling, some minor bumping to the heel of the spine, light soiling on the exterior of the text block. The jacket is unclipped with slight toning and small smudge marks on the back cover. 604 pages. First edition, second printing. Near fine.
 
A New Reading of American Poetry from Pre-Columbian Times to the Present. American Indian poetry, Afro-American blues and narratives, the sacred writings of the Shakers and other native sects, the verse experiments of the early twentieth century, side by side with established and forgotten poets from colonial times to the 1970s, reveal the hidden unity and power of America's poetry.  A rare and radical anthology.
 
"So many of my transparencies could not resist the race!
Terror in earth, dried mushrooms, pink feathers, tickets,
a flaking moon drifting across the muddied teeth,
the imperceptible moan of covered breathing,
love of the serpent!"