Poetry has seen a stark increase in popularity in recent years. The data collected by NielsenIQ BookScan showcases a trend of rising poetry sales. Figures reached a historical high in 2023 of £14.4 million before surpassing this to reach a new record in 2024 of £14.996 million. Now this record is on track to be surpassed once again. The first 30 weeks of 2026 have accounted for just over £8 million in sales. These are due to reach over £15 million by the end of the year.
The rises during the last decade have been attributed to periods of political instability, as well as digital trends such as the “Instapoetry” phenomenon. Cinematic and linguistic adaptations, modern life, and social media have all played their part in poetry’s rise. In addition to print, poetry is also returning to its origins as a spoken art form. Spoken events and poetry slams have become more popular.
Impact of Cinema
The release of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey has played a major role in the increase in poetry sales. Homer’s epic poems The Odyssey and The Iliad sold particularly well. Compared to the four weeks preceding 25th July 2025, print sales of The Odyssey in the UK rose by 1400% during the same period this year, thanks to the release of the blockbuster on 17th July. The translator of an acclaimed translation of The Odyssey into English published in 2017, Emily Wilson, while highly critical of Nolan’s film adaptation, was praiseworthy of the impact of the film not only on the expanded interest and engagement of audiences with The Odyssey but with cinema and literature at large.
Times of Turbulence
Another factor in poetry’s rise is the periods of upheaval and disorder of recent times. In times of conflict and turbulence, it seems that writers and readers choose to engage with poetry for its ability to capture and express deeper issues and feelings. Poetry goes beyond words, to convey meaning and feeling through form, imagery, and sound. It can be a vehicle to tackle the deeper subjects, events, and emotions of the human experience. In this way, it is a visual, musical, linguistic, and psychological art all at once. Since poets often layer meaning into their poems, via rhythms, cultural associations, wordplay, and symbolism, forming a unique interplay of features, they can also resonate more deeply.
Social Media
The last factor is social media. On platforms such as Instagram, many poets have found a following. They can share shorter poems and distribute these to a wide audience. Many poets have found success this way. Donna Ashworth began publishing poetry via a blog during the Covid-19 pandemic. Rupi Kaur began publishing her poems independently on Instagram in 2013. These poems can be paired with illustration and easily digested on screens. They can equally be shared to friends or saved as journal notes or screenshots. The popularity has also been linked to the wider theme of mental health, where poetry can offer solace.
The Characteristics of Poetry and Challenges for Translation
In discussions about AI and translation, poetry is often seen as one of the key strongholds of the human translator. Poems can include rhythm (rhyme, meter), devices that produce sound and imagery such as alliteration, metaphor, onomatopoeia, and pun, as well as visual structure. Since translators have to balance all of these often-competing elements, translating poetry into another language is extremely challenging. With a poem, there will be many choices that involve sacrificing or enhancing certain elements. This may include compromising the actual meaning of the words or the rhythm. It may also involve sacrificing the sense of time or place of the original. Likewise, finding language devices such as idioms, metaphors, or cultural references that have meaning and evoke similar emotions in the target culture may mean straying from the original wording.
Whether inspired to delve into the classical poems of the ancient Greeks or Romans, or the short-form poems finding popularity in the digital era, it seems readers are finding sanctuary in the poetry of both ancient and modern writers. Despite the challenges of translating poetry, the act of translation offers readers the chance to connect with poetic writings from around the world and from different eras in time.
If you would like help with translating content that will resonate with a new audience, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us here!
21 August 2026 16:18