early autumn,
color shift begins —
green days numbered.
Last Green Days [Haiku]
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Category Archives: Poetry
Wake Ripples [Haiku]
Half Moon Haiku
BOOKS: “Poems, 1965-1975” by Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney: Poems 1965 1975 by Seamus HeaneyMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher Site – McMillan FSG
This book gathers the poetry of the four Seamus Heaney collections that come out during the titularly referenced decade. This is his early work, his first four published collections, and includes: Death of a Naturalist, Door into the Dark, Wintering Out, and North.
I enjoy reading Heaney’s work. His poems tend to have a country influence and have a physicality that give them heft. Though in the latter half of the collection, there is increasing political influence — i.e. regarding the issue of Northern Ireland. Heaney’s poems often remind me of those of Robert Frost, though Heaney wrote much more free verse. Heaney had a love of words that some will adore while others find it distracting for the frequent visits to the dictionary with arcane words.
I’d recommend this collection for all poetry readers — especially if you love Frost (particularly for content, not form,) you’ll really enjoy the poems of Seamus Heaney.
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Lonely Mushroom [Haiku]
lonely mushroom
climbs out from under a rock;
after autumn rain.
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PROMPT: Celebrity
Which celebrity would you love to meet, and what would you talk about?
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Anne Carson just won the Nobel Prize for Literature. Does that count as a celebrity? She’s still in the 15 minutes of fame that comes from the recent announcement. She’d be interesting to talk to about poetry.
If it does not count, I would have to say that the more clearly a celebrity would count, probably the less interested I am in talking to them. I can’t think of any A-list actors / actresses or pop stars that appeal. Maybe a few rock stars and standup comedians — e.g. Bruce Springsteen to talk about lyrics or Louis C.K. about jokes.
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Tree Face [Senryū]
American Beautyberry [Haiku]
Beautyberries,
dense clusters of fuchsia,
lure hungry birds.
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Autumn Shadows [Haiku]
autumn long shadows
of a tuft of tall grass
etch rocky ground.
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BOOK: “A Poetry Handbook” by Mary Oliver
A Poetry Handbook: A Prose Guide to Understanding and Writing Poetry by Mary OliverMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher site — Ecco
This is an excellent soup-to-nuts primer on poetry writing. While it would be a great tool for someone just beginning their poetic journey — i.e. one who didn’t yet know iambic pentameter from trochaic tetrameter — it also offers some nuggets of wisdom for one who is farther down the road. Mary Oliver had some unique ways of thinking about, or expressing thoughts about, the art.
The book does cover ideas relevant to both modern and traditional poetry. In this regard it has an advantage over, say, Stephen Fry’s The Ode Less Traveled in that Oliver considered both free and metered verse to be poetry.
The author uses the occasional poem or fragment from a variety of poets to make her points but doesn’t get bogged down in examples or analysis of poems.
Among the discussions that seemed better or more insightful than those in other such books were reflections upon the role of imitative exercises as well as exploration of the value of workshops and feedback.
I’d highly recommend this book for poets and serious poetry readers.
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