Averno is Louise Glück's tenth collection of poetry published in 2006 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

The Greek myth of Demeter's daughter Persephone and her marriage to Hades is a recurring topic in the collection, as are the themes of oblivion and death, soul and body, love and isolation.

Averno has frequently been referred to as a "modern classic" due to its everlasting topics and themes.

The New York Times says "Glück takes up her own challenge, employing it to explore concepts like "mind" and "soul" with a fresh, often acidulous, perspective.

She sets out to examine the "rift in the human soul / which was not constructed to belong / entirely to life," and asks how a soul that survives its bodily existence can possibly find solace, knowing that life's myriad delights — "the red berries of the mountain ash" and "the birds' night migrations" — are gone forever.