Quote:I think I would flip your ordering of De la Mare and Poe: For me, De la Mare has a subtlety and delicate musicality that exceeds anything Poe was capable of.
I see your point, but Poe was a tremendous influence on de la Mare, and I simply cannot rate pupil ahead of master, in this case.
Quote:Also, what about "Smith the Poet"?
Certainly he is among the 20th Century's greatest poets, but unfortunately that's a bit like being king of the pygmies. Smith's deliberate archaisms and occasional over-ornateness weaken his poetry, and keep him behind the likes of de la Mare, for my taste.
As for Poe, again, Poe was too much CAS's master for me to rate CAS ahead of Poe--and I think that CAS would be the first to agree with me, if he could speak to the matter.
Prose stylists: I agree with you, and my list was merely a potpourri of favorites. No weirdist I know, including CAS, even remotely approaches the level of a Julien Gracq, for instance.
Quote:I know it's a fool's errand to make lists like this - but it is rather fun!
That's certainly the point, I think. All it reveals, ultimately, is the contributors' tastes, which may or not be of interest to anyone else.