Widening the perspective offered by the traditional canon, this history reveals the poetry of Italy between 1200 and 1600 as a site of plurality of genre, form and even language, including not just written texts but also those presented in performance. Within this inclusive framing, poetry's content, its cultural and geographical contexts and its material media of transmission are given equal weight. Decentring major figures and their texts while recognising their broad influence, the innovative theoretical and methodological framework complements the variety and liveliness of poetic activity on the Italian peninsula over four centuries, from the first manuscript experiments in verse through to sophisticated print productions and elaborate performance media. Offering original, multidisciplinary insights into current debates and discoveries, this history enlarges the scope of what we understand Italian premodern poetry to be.

‘The book demands to be read by anyone, no matter what level of familiarity they already possess, with an interest in one of the world's most significant vernacular cultures. Such is the brilliance and newness of this volume, the effect is like reading Italian poetry for the very first time, and learning about how early literature was conceived, produced and consumed. A veritable gem.'

Daragh O'Connell - Senior Lecturer in Italian, Director of Centre for Dante Studies in Ireland, University College Cork, Ireland

‘This collaborative project, thoughtfully conceived and beautifully executed, brings us poetry as protagonist, literary form as agentic force. Poetry of the peninsula is here seen as ubiquitous rather than élite, workaday and academic, ranging from graffiti and marginalia to inscriptions on public monuments. While paying close attention to the great (very great) figures of Italian literary history, this project nonetheless escapes their shadow to bring us new ways of experiencing poetry, on and off the page, new places where poetry may be found. Highly recommended.'

David Wallace - Judith Rodin Professor, University of Pennsylvania

‘Armstrong, Daniels and Keen have invented a new genre. This is not a handbook nor a specialized monograph, though it has the useful features of the former with the depth and insights of the latter. The editors have brilliantly curated an original volume for students and scholars that abundantly gives us fresh perspectives on the fascinating, rich worlds of early Italian poetry. Highly recommend.'

Kristina M. Olson - Associate Professor of Italian, George Mason University