"The Faerie Queen" is a marvelous epic poem depicting the virtues of the legendary King Arthur and his knights in a mythical land. Edmund Spenser's masterpiece is an intricately woven plot set in an inventive and fanciful setting. Written in appreciation for the Queen this work stands as a major literary achievement. In addition to «The Faerie Queen,» Edmund Spenser also wrote a number of other significant poems. His first major poetical work «The Shepherd's Calendar» begins this collection of his other poems. An emulation of Virgil's «Eclogues,» «The Shepherd's Calendar» depicts the life of shepherd Colin Clout through the twelve months of his year. The twelve eclogues of the poem, each named after a different month, discuss abuses of the church, offer praise for Queen Elizabeth, and reveal the struggles of a lonely shepherd. Also included in this edition of Spenser's poetry are the following poems: «The Ruins of Time,» «Prosopopoia,» «Muiopotmos,» «Colin Clout's Come Home Again,» «Amoretti,» and «Epithalamion.»
