CRITICISM

Carduff, Christofer. Review of A Gift Imprisoned, by Ian Hamilton. New Criterion 17, no. 10 (June 1999): 90.

Asserts that Hamilton's A Gift Imprisoned represents “an important reevaluation of Arnold's poetry.” Carduff praises Hamilton's biography of Arnold as concise, witty, and insightful.

Ford, Mark. “Perishing Genius.” Times Literary Supplement, no. 4648 (1 May 1992): 32.

Offers a mixed assessment of The Faber Book of Soccer, edited by Hamilton.

———. “Unimpressed But Not Unappeased.” Times Literary Supplement, no. 4754 (13 May 1994): 23.

Asserts that many of the essays in Hamilton's Walking Possession are witty and incisive, as well as carefully researched and argued.

Imlah, Mick. “A Poet Aged before His Time.” Times Literary Supplement, no. 4979 (4 September 1998): 4-5.

Discusses Hamilton's assertion in A Gift Imprisoned that Matthew Arnold's life can be divided into two distinct phases.

Latham, Aaron. “Credits where Credit is Due.” Book World—The Washington Post (10 June 1990): 4.

Offers a scathing critique of Hamilton's Writers in Hollywood.

Leader, Zachary. “Pride and Professionalism.” Times Literary Supplement, no. 4550 (15 June 1990): 630.

Asserts that Hamilton provides little in the way of original research in A Gift Imprisoned, relying almost exclusively on secondary sources.

Mackinnon, Lachlan. “Disclosing and Disclaiming.” Times Literary Supplement, no. 4426 (29 January 1988): 115.

Mackinnon states he prefers Hamilton's later poems to his earlier poems in Fifty Poems, and comments that he wishes Hamilton had continued to write poetry throughout his life.

Murray, Nicholas. “Brief but Feelingful.” Times Literary Supplement, no. 5048 (4 June 1999): 25.

Discusses Sixty Poems, by Ian Hamilton, and Another Round at the Pillars: Essays, Poems, and Reflections on Ian Hamilton, edited by David Harsent.

Potts, Robert. “Poetries in English.” Times Literary Supplement, no. 4742 (18 February 1994): 9.

Offers a mixed assessment of The Oxford Companion to Twentieth Century Poetry in English, edited by Hamilton. Potts concludes that it is “a handsome conversation piece.”

Spears, Monroe K. “Life and Art in Lowell, or from Caligula to Philoctetes.” Southern Review 20 (winter 1984): 221-31.

Describes Hamilton's Robert Lowell as “an extraordinary achievement.” Spears asserts that Hamilton's extensive interviews with those who knew Lowell are one of the greatest strengths of the biography.

Spender, Stephen. “Life Studies in Poetry, History and Madness.” Book World—The Washington Post (14 November 1982): 1, 9.

Describes Hamilton's Robert Lowell as an excellent biography.

Treglown, Jeremy. “Beware the Biographer.” Times Literary Supplement, no. 4674 (30 October 1992): 9.

Asserts that Hamilton's Keepers of the Flame is absorbing and amusing, as well as touching on a number of issues central to literary history.

Wall, Stephen. “Ian Hamilton and the Poet's Life.” Essays in Criticism 52, no. 3 (July 2002): 209-21.

Provides a brief overview of Hamilton's publications in literary criticism, biography, and poetry.

Yardley, Jonathan. “Their Precious Reputations.” Book World—The Washington Post (10 April 1994): 3.

Asserts that Hamilton's Keepers of the Flame makes for “useful and provocative reading for anyone interested in biography,” but that the work as a whole lacks a coherent overriding line of argument.

Additional coverage of Hamilton's life and career is contained in the following sources published by the Gale Group: Contemporary Authors, Vols. 106, 203; Contemporary Authors New Revision Series, Vols. 41, 67; Contemporary Poets, Ed. 7; Dictionary of Literary Biography, Vols. 40, 155; and Literature Resource Center.