NEW HOPE INTERNATIONAL REVIEW

An independent small press poetry review

Wisteria PO Box 150932 Lufkin TX 75915-0932 USA $3 [RoW $5] Subscriptions: 4 issues $10 [RoW $18] checks [US only] payable to "T.A. Thompson" ISSN 1931-986X email Wisteria visit the website of Wisteria Web design by This page last updated: 29th December 2007.		Wisteria #1
		First issue of a new magazine devoted to haiku, senryu and tanka, which gets off to an excellent start with this very pleasant looking production. Its A6 size makes it ideal for slipping in pocket or bag if you want to read it on the train or bus. For me, the standout item was Michael McClintock's opening the Bible to any page, randomly, I look for meanings as if to catch God naked by jumping out of bushes which successfully wraps up some serious thought in a pretty funny overcoat. They're happy to put two poems on a page , which is good — not too cluttered, yet it avoids the rather precious appearance of a single haiku surrounded by acres of white space, as if in a gallery — some like it, I know, some (including myself) just find it irritating. Good to get a list of contributors, too. One to watch to see how it develops.
		reviewer: John Francis Haines.

		Wisteria #2
		The second issue of the mini chapbook WISTERIA, edited by T. A. Thompson, contains haiku and tanka from 25 poets, including such luminaries as John Barlow, Sanford Goldstein, Jim Kacian, Michael McClintock and Marie Summers. The cover has an impressive photo of purple and white wisteria and the tanka and haiku are presented two to a page. As with the first issue of WISTERIA, I was struck by the work's energy — at once fluent and restless — and the plenitude of its observations, an abundance which, though not lacking its darker side, leads you through a catalogue of experience. One could quote at random: some things are final there is no recourse — snow mounds on their early tombstones Aurora Antonovic The haiku and tanka sound as though written at white heat, direct from the moment to the event, as should be the case with the Japanese short form. Directness is one of the salient features of this collection, virtue even, as poets confront experience and bring exemplary language to their poems. Many of the poems are visual in nature, and the collection is full of arresting images: gridlock— a walker passes on the shoulder Michael Blaine cross of ashes — she lifts her face to late winter sun Randy Brooks The individual poems Thompson has chosen to publish convey a variety of emotions, from the coolness and accurate observation of nature portrayed in Tom Clausen's haiku the dusk . . . cows become the hill to the all too human question raised in Sandford Goldstein's tanka tell me indifferent five-line muse of a world gone stale will you try to thrust Hamlet's spark into my restless mouth? where the flood of emotion is strongly reinforced by the words "indifferent", "trust", "spark" and restless". John Barlow's sharp eye for detail and observation of nature results in the following haiku warm front a new band on the lamb's tail whilst in her tanka Janet Lynn Davis brings us painfully back to the everyday world of reports of war, terrorism and heartbreak and the way in which life goes on regardless the crackle and pop of my breakfast cereal — more news about car bomb blasts somewhere else in the world These are poems of exploration and self-discovery, poems about the natural world, with a strong sense of love and generosity, embracing life in all its details. What lifts the collection is the poetry inherent in the writing. I found it a sensual delight, the sound, shape and musicality of the words as transporting as a piece of music. I needed to continually stop and enjoy the shade and light of the words, breathe in the view of the rich landscapes, revel in the language, as in Ruth Holzer's tanka at Kamakura inside the great bronze hollow of the Buddha you said you were thinking of me how could I not believe you If you haven't read WISTERIA, you must get hold of an issue, and discover its readability. It is approachable, involved in the day-to-day, involves the reader in a wide discussion of ideas and presents to the reader's palate a taste of variety. If my experience with this issue is anything to go by, reading WISTERIA will continue to be both a pleasure and a challenge.
		reviewer: Patricia Prime.

		Wisteria #3
		This is a discrete, pocket-sized journal of haiku, senryu and tanka. A delightful little gem to get you through the day: my shadow too caught on a thorn — winter sundown the poem above is by Ruth Holzer, and the tanka below is by An'ya: should spring rain fall gently on my grave after burial . . . six feet under or not I'll still be facing up There is much to delight here, as in the following, with skilled brevity, by Vincent Tripi; so get your own copy and enjoy: ginkgo biloba . . . I remember God
		reviewer: Doreen King.

		Wisteria #4
		This minute anthology features 38 poems. Most are good: fresh, delicate, poignant, amusing. The majority, I imagine, are by American writers. Americans produce some fine haiku. I am reminded of the highly evocative collections of William Hart, Virgil Hutton and Kirsty Karkov. Ms Karkov's work is included in this anthology: we talk about feeling small ... winter stars A poem that, in ten syllables, sums up a feeling of powerlessness in a world that appears bent on descending into chaos. Margaret Engele's equally effective poem evokes a more specific unease: treeless town in scraps of shade my patchwork life I like, very much, Carla Sari's slant on the English west country's moonrakers' tale: yesterday's downpour — the moon in the well within reach WISTERIA is a modest but pleasing anthology.
		reviewer: Michael Bangerter.

		Wisteria #5
		Wisteria is a small, perfectly formed and beautifully produced booklet, as befits a publication devoted to haiku, senryu and tanka. The contents don't disappoint either. This issue includes the winning haiku from the Pinewood Haiku Contest. Matthew Paul came second with this insightful observation, comparing the seasons of a relationship to the seasons of the year: autumn night the duvet gathers between us. Nature is not neglected however as in this vivid example from Kirsty Karkow: the shiny redness of a freshly pulled radish more rain predicted. K Ramesh evokes childhood summer holidays perfectly: blue sea — the paper kite rises again from the sand There are several tanka too, though mostly these didn't make as much of an impression on me as the haiku did. (That is a comment on the high quality of the haiku, rather than any lack of quality in the tanka). Wisteria contains many poems to savour and re-read.
		reviewer: Juliet Wilson.

		Wisteria #6
		Small but perfectly formed. It's a tiny gem of verse and its lovely purple wisteria cover makes you want to open it immediately and see what's inside. For me, Helen Buckingham's entry is more than the sum of its parts. The image she creates lifts off from the page. I can almost reach out and feel those children retrieving pennies from the fountain. Likewise, I was attracted to Roger Jones' entry, evoking summer days. Also, I enjoyed and felt the poignancy of Marie Summers weight of the clothesline and her clever and subtle take on the universal subject of worries, in this case — financial and otherwise. These are tight lines of creativity where what is left out is more important that what is put in. Controlled writing at its best. I enjoy the discipline of reading (and indeed writing) this form of poetry.
		reviewer: Louise Laurie.

		Wisteria #7
		A tiny, plainly-presented journal of haiku, senryu and tanka that nonetheless manages to squeeze in forty-odd pieces from twenty-two poets. Here are some well-drawn examples from, amongst others, Helen Buckingham, Susan Constable, Jim Kacian and Bob Lucky: autumn chill... unable to get up the first time steep hill the rain too, stops halfway up cleaning out after mom's death dad's clothes hospital visit... opening the window to let out a bee
		reviewer: Alan Hardy.