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Classic Love Poems  By  cover art

Classic Love Poems

By: William Shakespeare, Edgar Allan Poe, Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Narrated by: Richard Armitage
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Publisher's summary

Audie Award Finalist, Best Male Narrator, 2016

For anyone who's in love - or hopes to be - what greater celebration could there be than to hear the world's greatest love poetry read lovingly by Richard Armitage? With 13 poems by William Shakespeare, Edgar Allan Poe, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and more, Classic Love Poems is a listening treat for Valentine's Day - or any day.

Included in this collection are:

  • "How do I love thee?" by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
  • "Sonnet 116" by William Shakespeare
  • "Annabel Lee" by Edgar Allan Poe
  • "To Be One with Each Other" by George Eliot
  • "Maud" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson
  • "To His Coy Mistress" by Andrew Marvell
  • "Bright Star" by John Keats
  • "Love's Philosophy" by Percy Bysshe Shelley
  • 1 Corinthians 13:4-8
  • "Meeting at Night" by Robert Browning
  • "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love" by Christopher Marlowe
  • "She Walks in Beauty" by Lord Byron
  • "Give All to Love" by Ralph Waldo Emerson

About the Performer

Richard Armitage is known to movie audiences around the world as "Thorin Oakenshield" in the trilogy of films based on The Hobbit. Born in Leicester, England, and trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, Armitage has performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company, and created memorable roles on Robin Hood, North & South, and other British TV series.

Public Domain (P)2015 Audible Inc.

Featured Article: The Best Poetry Audiobooks to Listen to for National Poetry Month


It’s a common turn of phrase that poetry is meant to be heard. Tone, pauses, cadence, and vocal inflections all serve to further the emotional pull of modern and historical poetic masterpieces. In audio, poems can be heard and enjoyed just as the poet meant them to be. Taking into account not only the words themselves but the way they are spoken, our list provides a look at the power behind a poem, celebrating those works which have touched our souls.

What listeners say about Classic Love Poems

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Wonderful recitation by Richard Armitage

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. It's a wonderful recording by Richard Armitage of a lovely selection of classic love poems... his delivery moves one's heart, mind and soul!

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27 people found this helpful

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Perfect Voice

Richard Armitage reads love poems with a voice like a goblet of Merlot poured from a thick glass decanter waiting next to crimson rose petals scattered across a chenille duvet over down and crisp linen laid out smooth on the feather bed with the maroon velvet bed curtains held back with but the loosest of ties.

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You'll want to hear Richard Armitage reading these

This is such a treat! Richard Armitage's liquid baritone hits all the right notes. You'll find yourself listening to the poems repeatedly, anticipating that slight inflection or pause that makes all the difference. I loved the Emerson poem best, but they are all a gift. Thank you Audible, and thank you Richard Armitage!

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25 people found this helpful

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A beautiful gift

Thanks to Audible for this lovely free gift! 💕 It makes Valentines Day all the sweeter. Richard’s performance is, as always, impassioned and eloquent.

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12 people found this helpful

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SUBLIME.

Delightful and ethereal. Well done! Richard Armitage has been wonderful, almost divine and definitely perfect. All my respect. xx

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11 people found this helpful

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Amazing!

Would you consider the audio edition of FREE: Classic Love Poems to be better than the print version?

Yes, because poetry should always be read out loud.

What did you like best about this story?

All the poems are quickly becoming my favorites.

What about Richard Armitage’s performance did you like?

His voice obviously. I could seriously fall asleep listening to him read.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I have several time already.

Any additional comments?

Mr. Armitage needs to record more stuff for Audible.

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9 people found this helpful

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Perfection!

This is a lovely collection of some of my favorite poems. Richard Armitage's recitation is rich and heartfelt. So, so beautiful!

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BRILLIANT

Beautiful, lovely, feeling good voice of the amazing Richard Armitage. Love him to bits and pieces. Wonderful poems performed by the amazing Richard Armitage.

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8 people found this helpful

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Lovely.

A short Valentine's treat.
I have listened to Richard Armitage read Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, also. He is a marvelous narrator.

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Love RA

Very beautiful voice, so emotional and so touching, I listened to it before sleep which made my night sweet and fantastic

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