What a joy and a pleasure it was to read this book of haiku by Richard Wright! I prolonged the experience by reading just a few at a time, but eventuaWhat a joy and a pleasure it was to read this book of haiku by Richard Wright! I prolonged the experience by reading just a few at a time, but eventually my desire to read its content overwhelmed me, and I finished it this morning. The text is exquisitely framed by an Introduction by Juia Wright, Richard's daughter, and by the Afterword by Yoshinobu Hakutani and Robert L. Tener. Julia Wright prepares us emotionally for the experience of her father's haiku--his illness, his rural home in Normandy, the delicate balance of Wright's exploration of a new form of writing while living out his final months. The Afterword sets Wright's work in its historical and autobiographical context.
I was astounded, stunned, and delighted by these poems. I read them from the belly--they affected me somatically. These haiku are a gift from Wright to the world of literature--to the world. In my heart, I feel love and gratitude to the poet who created them. ...more
One of the most amazing novels I have ever read, Always Coming Home is a fictional anthropological field guide to the Kesh, a future tribal society thOne of the most amazing novels I have ever read, Always Coming Home is a fictional anthropological field guide to the Kesh, a future tribal society that lives in the Napa Valley. LeGuin offers essays about housing, geography, language, the number system, memoirs, poetry, ritual, and more, including a compelling memoir titled "Stone Telling." At first, the Kesh are presented as living in an ideal society: egalitarian, feminist, respectful of nature, and compassionate. More complexities emerge as the Kesh encounter other tribes in the region and some members embrace a more militaristic worldview. Sometimes engaging, sometimes dull, always astonishing, Always Coming Home is a testimony to Le Guin's creative genius, a potential blueprint for the future. ...more
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Cheap Motels of My Youth. Bilgere's poems are multi-dimensional, funny, even profound. They remind me of small sci-fi stoI thoroughly enjoyed reading Cheap Motels of My Youth. Bilgere's poems are multi-dimensional, funny, even profound. They remind me of small sci-fi stories in which the main character acts out commands built into his genes, his ancestors live so closely within him: "There I am // for a flash, an instant, and there / is my grandfather, my great- / great-grandfather..." (Dreamer). This was my introduction to Bilgere; it won't be my last meeting with him. ...more
Susan Burch pushes the boundaries with her narrative about a dysfunctional relationship told in tanka form. Each chiseled cut gleams. Brilliant and saSusan Burch pushes the boundaries with her narrative about a dysfunctional relationship told in tanka form. Each chiseled cut gleams. Brilliant and satisfying....more
A brilliant, fascinating collection of tanka, most of them inspired by Mullen's neighborhood walks in Santa Monica, but also set in Texas, Florida, anA brilliant, fascinating collection of tanka, most of them inspired by Mullen's neighborhood walks in Santa Monica, but also set in Texas, Florida, and on mountain hikes. Mullen takes the tanka form, gives it three lines instead of five, limits each to 31 syllables, and creates astonishingly vivid, compressed, and expressive poems. One of the most interesting books I've read this year, due to the way Mullen turns her walks into naturalist-anthropological-philosophical ruminations. The 21st century has been aptly described here. I am grateful that she also finds moments of beauty in a land of wind-pushed plastic grocery bags, the urban tumbleweeds of the title....more
In an effective use of haiku and tanka, Kelsey frames the moments of her recovery from trauma. This remarkable form holds recovered memory in containeIn an effective use of haiku and tanka, Kelsey frames the moments of her recovery from trauma. This remarkable form holds recovered memory in containers of space, light, and breath. Beautiful, honest, and brave. Highly recommended....more
A fun collection of poems about household goods that use rhymed quatrains as their vehicle. Pollack uses the vocabulary of each utensil's parts, adds A fun collection of poems about household goods that use rhymed quatrains as their vehicle. Pollack uses the vocabulary of each utensil's parts, adds sound effects, and presents fitting, surprising imagery to explore and uncover something more than function. Poems read lightly, but truth lurks in each, as in the pencil, "what keeps it sharp can be what grinds it down." Suddenly my kitchen appliances seem more than machinery to me....more
I'm being hard on Le Guin by giving Wild Angels only three stars; 3.5 is more like it. This is her first chapbook, published in 1975. The poems draw fI'm being hard on Le Guin by giving Wild Angels only three stars; 3.5 is more like it. This is her first chapbook, published in 1975. The poems draw from her lifelong immersion in fantasy and mythology, classics, dreams, and people from her California life. In the tradition of fantasy literature, these poems are metered and rhymed, contradicting the prevailing interest in free verse of the time. As usual, Le Guin was ahead of her time. My favorite poem is the brief "Offering," which I can imagine could be an effective prayer and last thought for all poets approaching sleep.
I made a poem going to sleep last night, woke in sunlight, it was clean forgotten.
If it was any good, gods of the great darkness where sleep goes and farther death goes, you not named, then as true offering accept it.
These multi-layered poems go everywhere life is--to the summer of the Atlanta Child Murders, to a broken tooth, a group of urban gleaners, a laundromaThese multi-layered poems go everywhere life is--to the summer of the Atlanta Child Murders, to a broken tooth, a group of urban gleaners, a laundromat, anywhere a community might gather. These poems can withstand multiple readings--there's always something more to discover within them. Jones's perceptions are fearless, clear-eyed, and compassionate; her ear is exquisite. Keep a reference work at hand--keeping up with Jones's references will deepen your experience. It's good to see this collection coming from Copper Canyon. The Beloved Community is an important work, a collection of poems that represent life in the United States, its beauty and its turbulence....more
I worried that this trilingual publication would distract me, but no. I found it easy to read, beautifully expressive, and emotionally moving. The poeI worried that this trilingual publication would distract me, but no. I found it easy to read, beautifully expressive, and emotionally moving. The poet travels through myth and tradition into her own complex identity. She both respects her culture and recognizes that she lives with it and beyond it. Each set of facing pages is a visual treat where Sanchez's poems are printed in the Zoque, Spanish, and English languages. I intend to read this one again. I'll struggle with the Spanish next time, study the letters and words of the Zoque for the pleasure of trying the other passageways offered. Even in English, these are poems unlike any others I've read....more
Read this book, read Bert Meyers's phenomenal poems. He was a master of imagery and metaphor. I enjoyed everything here--the poems and the brief essayRead this book, read Bert Meyers's phenomenal poems. He was a master of imagery and metaphor. I enjoyed everything here--the poems and the brief essays by those who knew and cared about Meyers. I had to read every poem twice--they are astonishing. What a gift of a book. Just read it. ...more
The Tao Te Ching is a collection of beautiful, profound, puzzling poems about the Way, often conveyed as a series of contradictions: "Who knows/doesn’The Tao Te Ching is a collection of beautiful, profound, puzzling poems about the Way, often conveyed as a series of contradictions: "Who knows/doesn’t talk. / Who talks/doesn’t know." In her notes, Le Guin calls the poems renditions rather than translations. She intended to present the Way in a voice that speaks to the soul; I think she succeeded....more
I am missing the point of these poems. Who is dead? Who is sick? Who is damaged? What is Plucked? With artful use of syntax and line breaks, the authoI am missing the point of these poems. Who is dead? Who is sick? Who is damaged? What is Plucked? With artful use of syntax and line breaks, the author sidesteps direct meaning, leaving me, the reader, to wonder what just happened. I have much to think about and to return to in this Rattle Chapbook winner....more
I love the way that Molina weaves womb images into this collection. The womb's whoosh, whoosh is a recurring auditory reminder of the womb-as-center, I love the way that Molina weaves womb images into this collection. The womb's whoosh, whoosh is a recurring auditory reminder of the womb-as-center, the womb-as-source, the womb as beginning, as ocean, as mandala. The womb's spiritual, powerful, practical presence carries a mother's hopes and prayers for her child, who survives three occurrences of cancer. There is much to admire in these poems and I learned something remarkable about drawing inward and letting go from reading them. Kudos to the poet....more
A Poet's Craft is an enormous textbook about the qualities of poetry and how to encourage them in one's own poems. I'm reading it slowly and decided tA Poet's Craft is an enormous textbook about the qualities of poetry and how to encourage them in one's own poems. I'm reading it slowly and decided to write my reactions as I go, rather than wait until I reach the end.
First surprise: I like reading this book! Finch gracefully introduces her topics, supplies multiple examples, and points out how they pertain to the discussion. I wouldn't know that this is a text. I don't know yet how to explain this--it's not a slog, it's not dull, everything is interesting. Hoorah.
Second: The writing exercises move at a slower pace than the text. I may have to keep this book at my side for a year or more.
Third: Finch's text is a delight to read. I wonder if it would seem so if the book had been formatted as a traditional college textbook: hardbound, with shiny pages, text formatted into columns of text with sidebars. It's presented as if it's a series of essays in which the narrative is as important as the content. When I complete a reading session I feel refreshed.
Fourth: This is the most thorough discussion of types of rhyme that I have ever read.
Impressive book of poetry, but difficult for me to approach because of the variety of poetic forms and literary references used. These are explained iImpressive book of poetry, but difficult for me to approach because of the variety of poetic forms and literary references used. These are explained in notes in the back. Very literary. African-American, southern, non-binary themes. I hope to read it again soon. Not for beginners....more
Loading...
