A Rare Recording of Mary Oliver Reading Her Own Poetry

By: Mary Oliver

Narrated by: Mary Oliver

Mary Jane Oliver (September 10, 1935-January 17, 2019), from Maple Heights, OH, was an American poet who won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984 and the National Book Award in 1992. She found inspiration for her work in nature and had a lifelong habit of solitary walks in the wild. Her poetry is characterized by wonderment at the natural environment, vivid imagery, and unadorned language. In 2007, she was declared the best-selling poet in the United States.

Public Domain (P)2025 Listen & Live Audio

Mary Oliver - a stunning performance

I loved it all - her reading and the audience’s response. I listen again and again.

Authentic, simple and short

I bought this because it was inexpensive and I'm so glad I did. Hearing her despite her having a cold was just so beautiful and meaningful to me. I just love her and her way of presenting her poems. She's so real and doesn't hold back on some of more painful ones. Her solace she finds in nature is mine also and I am forever grateful to her for that and so many of her poems. Thank you dear Mary, you were and are a gift to the world.