The book includes "Barcarolle" (barcarolle), a poem from Auden's libretto for Igor Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress, the only poem in the book that did not appear in Auden's later collections.
The book showcases "Barcarolle" (barcarolle), a verse from Auden's opera libretto for Igor Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress, which stands out as being part of this particular collection and was not included in Auden's subsequent literary works.