150th Anniversary of Walt Whitman's, Leaves of Grass

"I lean and loafe at my ease... observing a spear of summer grass."
From Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman

On July 4, 1855, an unknown poet, Walt Whitman, changed forever the way we would look at poetry. Leaves of Grass came out to mixed reviews and widespread disinterest. It took many years but eventually this book changed the way poets wrote... and the way they thought of themselves.

This summer marks the 150th anniversary of Walt Whitman's, first of its kind, free-verse. Published in July 1855, Leaves of Grass expanded poetry's boundaries.