Customer Reviews

The Haiku Anthology

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I have not seen a more comprehensive collection of contemporary English-language haiku than Cor van den Heuvel's remarkable anthology. The book presents over 800 poems, and the introductions (the ones from the previous editions are included) give helpful direction to the overwhelmed reader.

The greatest beauty of this collection, though, is that you can carry it around with you and open randomly to any page and discover something surprising, exciting, wondrous, even breathtaking.

If you think of haiku as silly poems you wrote in elementary school, those three line ditties in a syllable pattern of 5-7-5, then you need this book to purge your preconceptions and demonstrate the many possibilities of the haiku form.

The point is often made that haiku is an increasingly popular poetic form in English, although the truth is probably more that Americans, among English speakers, have for some reason particularly taken to this classical Japanese discipline. Almost without exception, the 89 writers featured in this anthology are from the USA or Canada, losing it a star - in my estimation - for lack of global range. That said, this book contains many delights. There is a clear and useful introduction explaining the technical differences between classical haiku forms (with their zen-like focus on nature, seaons, and a permanent present tense) and "senryu", which concentrate on human relationships and the distinctly human condition. An anthology survives on its works, however, and there is much here to intrigue. The late Nicholas Virgilio's best known work is included here, full of classical Japanese haiku spirit.

lily:/ out of the water../ out of itself

Some of the senyru owe as much to Homer Simpson as Basho or Buson. Try Alan Pizzarelli's

the fat lady/ bends over the tomatoes/ a full moon

Many deal with unequivocally modern subjects. For example, Alexis Rotella's

Discussing divorce/ he strokes/ the lace tablecloth

For a non-American, many of the works here seem too self-absorbed - the very opposite of haiku's original intention. There are also too many works that are meretricious, that seem dashed off, as if their slight size makes haiku light weight. But in 850 works, there are plenty that achieve the elusive gift of transferring epiphany. This pleasingly bound little hardback should inspire writers, poets, readers. It will also, hopefully, direct the curious back to the great works of the Japanese Masters, Basho, Buson and Issa, in particular. Mostly though, it is a book to nag at us gently, infuriate us occasionally, as slowly its little gems work their way into our thoughts.

my dead brother../ hearing his laugh/ in my laughter

(N. Virgilio)

It is very hard to discuss the quality of haiku since its ability to resonate in our emotions through imagery is so subjective. Let me just say that I discovered new poets I never heard of before who made a powerful impression on me. That alone is worth five stars to me.

I have a single poem that appears in this collection of 850 haiku. It represents a decade of work preserved in small press haiku publications and self-published chapbooks. The poem is based on my first parachute jump on June 13, 1982, in Perris, California. What I remember about the jump is intersecting an incredibly sweet silence with the solemnity of sunset filling my eyes. When you read this beautiful book, know that the work--and the included haiku poets--are only the tip of the iceberg.

Whether you know it well or not much, want to read it or write it, this is THE book to get. Page after page of little moments of magic. I have begun writing haiku because of it. You cannot read it or write it and NOT be quiet and peaceful inside. It requires mindfulness.

Myth about 5-7-5 syllable pattern is discussed - a much freer form than I had previously thought. A real gem of a book. Great variety of ideas, styles.

The Haiku Anthology is absolutely necessary for anyone considering tackling the writing of haiku in English. I have read it so often that I had to buy another copy as the pages of my original fell out! Like most good things in life, this is best savoured slowly - over and over and over...

To say that all the poems in the anthology are haiku is really an exaggeration. Many are the poetic equivalent of one-liners - little inside jokes that poke fun at the Big Themes of haiku by parodying the traditional forms: two distinct but overlapping images with an implied relationship, the caesura (complete with the ubiquitous dash), the seasonal reference. Sometimes these improvisations on the form work. But sometimes they fall flat and even suggest that the writer doesn't really know what a haiku is, much less a poem. Either way, the book is bound to both delight and irritate all its readers: traditionalists and experimenters, the Zen-school and the lay-school, and those who insist on the critical differences between haiku and senryu. Just as the form necessarily changed when haiku began to be written in English (we can't write in the same syllabic format as the Japanese), so must it react to the demands of modernism and post-modernism, and, yes, technology. We are not, after all, Medieval Japanese. If nothing else, this anthology proves that haiku isn't just one kind of thing, but a living, growing form. And that's plenty.

I felt a little foolish, at first, buying a book that contained so few words. Now I treasure this book. I love the vivid imagery, how the haikus stir memories of seasons past. What I like most about these haikus is their suggestiveness. There may be only eight words or five or less, but they are evocative words. They whisper of stories, provide a glimpse of powerful emotions, and most of all, they entice the imagination. Don't be fooled by the lack of words on the page. Instead, discover that a book, that poetry, is so much more than mere words.

The standard anthology for haiku in English. All of the poems included are of the highest quality. Must have for all haiku lovers.

The Haiku anthology was a great read. The poems are organized in sets by author for easy reference and represent some of the best english language haiku that I have read. I would recommend this anthology to everyone who loves haiku as a must for their library.