Cuttlefish books poetry series no. 1
The Ohio Haiku Anthology
Haiku is experiencing a resurgence in popularity and success in Ohio. For the first time in twenty years, haiku poets from across Ohio are gathered in one anthology to showcase their talent. This collection serves as a celebration of haiku in Ohio, both past and present, and exists as a testament to the lasting success of haiku in Ohio as well as its future potential.
ISBN: 978-1-7350257-0-4
Cuttlefish books poetry series no. 2
The New green by grix
"Moving seamlessly between the natural world and a surreal one, these poems explore the edges of what contemporary haiku can do. Open, vulnerable, and at times defying linear logic, GRIX offers the reader glimpses of life through a new—and captivating—lens."
—Susan Antolin
Editor of Acorn: A Journal of
Contemporary Haiku
"Stop. Are you truly immersed in this ordinary moment? Shouldn’t you be? the new green wraps you in scenes from the real world, of beauty, pain, and quiet acceptance; right now as it exists and has, time and again for each of us. Clearly, GRIX has held every moment… humorous, uncomfortable, sublime, or glorious and deeply explored each. The author is brutally honest about their life and brings incredible depth and compassion to the poetry. Each page of the new green is an invitation to elevate and appreciate the common moments, this moment. Read. Breathe. Connect."
—m. shane pruett,
Judge in the Inaugural Trailblazer Contest
ISBN: 978-1-7350257-3-5
Cuttlefish books poetry series no. 3
dewdrop world by orrin prejean
"Dewdrop World is a moving collection that brings the reader both the darkness of our inner voices and the light of quiet and gratitude. Orrin PreJean reminds us that great senryu is both gripingly, instantly modern, and enduringly timeless in the same breath. Many flowers grow on these pages, bathed in this light."
— B. A. France
author of Season's End
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"A dewdrop, like a convex mirror, can reflect the world around it. Similarly, Orrin PreJean’s Dewdrop World reflects the many aspects of the poet as a man. Gay, black, religious, and thoughtful, PreJean opens his world to us in this excellent collection of one-line senryu. From loneliness to casual sex, from silence to talking around the obvious, and from personal grief to social awareness, PreJean reveals many of his '365 faces.' Juxtaposed against a community of haiku poets who write of cherry blossoms and sunsets, PreJean’s contemporary subject matter is a breath of fresh air. Dewdrop World is as original and insightful as its one-of-a-kind author."
— Dave Read
ISBN: 978-1-7350257-4-2
Cuttlefish books poetry series no. 4
hot girl haiku by lithica ann (dead name lori a minor)
"In Hot Girl Haiku, Lori A Minor unveils both the treats and travails of young womanhood with humor and horror. With this short yet gut-punching chapbook, Minor invents an entirely new form of transgressive haiku. And in doing so, the poet not only describes the hedonist party culture of a college student, but also reveals the hypocrisy of puritan values, especially in poems such as, 'Christian Ethics / the preacher’s son / says I look kinky.' While Minor’s haiku can be a serious critique of toxic masculinity, it can also be read as a fun and unique twist on the haiku form that’s well worth a read and a re-read."
— Sean Lynch
Program Director of Nick Virgilio Haiku Association
ISBN: 978-1-7350257-2-8
Cuttlefish books poetry series no. 5
after curfew by julie bloss kelsey
"In these pages, Julie Bloss Kelsey takes us on her own evolutionary journey as we get to witness her transformation from this cute, awkward little duckling into a beautiful, confident black swan. Many of these moments might be “sugar, spice, and everything nice”, but I find myself getting lost in every teenage dream I remember having. Even if individual experiences are unique and vary from person to person, this classic coming-of-age story is one every generation will be able to connect with."
— Rowan Beckett
author of Recycled Virgin and Hot Girl Haiku,
founder and editor of #FemkuMag,
publisher at Moth Orchid Press
ISBN: 978-1-7350257-5-9
Cuttlefish books poetry series no. 6
A million Shadows at noon
by lenard d. moore
"Through these haiku, Moore presents single, transitory moments to create a communal narrative about the strength, commitment, and humanity of African American men."
—Ce Rosenow
author, Lenard D. Moore and African American Haiku:
Merging Traditions
Senior Editor, Juxtapositions:
Research and Scholarship in Haiku
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"Lenard D. Moore has given us more than a pledge; he has given us the gift of Poetry. African American men should march for nothing less."
—E. Ethelbert Miller
Jessie Ball duPont Visiting Scholar
Emory & Henry College
"As one of the leading haiku poets in the United States, Moore understands how deceptively simple forms can be used to make complexity accessible....We do welcome a poem that enables us to recollect our powerful emotional responses to that day and to consider how dim or vivid are our memories now."
—Jerry W. Ward, Jr.
Moss Chair of Excellence in English
University of Memphis
ISBN: 978-1-7350257-6-6
Cuttlefish books poetry series no. 7
postcards from texas by allyson whipple
"Allyson Whipple takes familiar objects from our human world (an air conditioner, trash cans), combines them with natural elements (a cicada, bluebonnets), and weaves them together with unobtrusive expressions of deep, complex, and universal emotions."
—Warren Decker
author of The Long Side of the Midnight Sun
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"As another former Texan, I appreciate the specific details of both the good and bad of the Texas landscapes and towns/cities. These 'postcards' are a strong reminder of the place we both left and of our similar trajectories into the world of haiku."
—Scott Wiggerman
Co-Editor, Lifting the Sky:
Southwestern Haiku and Haiga
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"In these haiku of witness, Allyson Whipple has crafted an earnest love letter to Texas. Each of these fifty-three worshipful poems speaks towards the changing landscape of this humid, sprouting, gentrified, grackle-sung, deeply-loved state, practicing attention as devotion."
—Zoë Fay-Stindt
author of Bird Body
ISBN: 978-1-7350257-7-3
Cuttlefish books poetry series no. 8
VITAL SIGNS by DEBORAH P KOLODJI
"Like an ochre sea star clinging to the rock at low tide, Deborah P Kolodji clings to positivity and hope in her new collection of haiku, Vital Signs. Here she chronicles hair loss, pain meds, IV fluids, loneliness, support groups and the ever present vital signs at dawn; the heart is caressed on each page. Highly recommended.
Terry Ann Carter
author, Tokaido (Red Moon Press, 2017)
winner of the Touchstone Distinguished Book Award
Vital Signs is an intimate colletion which is beautiful and deeply moving. Kolodji shares her arduous journey through cancer with honesty, courage, gritty humor and grace. From raccoon eyes to a wheelchair as a Martian rover, her vivid images and imaginative leaps demonstrate a stunning mastery of the contemporary haiku form.
Bruce H. Feingold
author, arrhythmia and everything with an asterisk
Vice President of the Haiku Poets of Northern California