Close to the Wind

Close to the Wind is an anthology of poems from the 2013 Haiku North America conference, which took place August 14 to 18 aboard the Queen Mary, docked in the harbour at Long Beach, California. Edited by Michael Dylan Welch and William Hart, with illustrations by Naia, this book includes haiku and senryu by 97 poets (one poem each), the second-largest in the history of Haiku North America anthologies.

      wind from the south

her finger traces the character

              for snow

            Sandra Simpson

Explore the book

• Read the introduction

• Read selected poems

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2013, perfectbound, 52 pages, 5.5 x 8.5 inches, ISBN 978-1-878798-35-0

• “Even when gales are lashing and we’re sailing close to the wind, here’s hoping we can maintain our close-knit spirit of community and always remain on a first-name basis.” —from the introduction

• “Haiku North America convened in 2013 for its twelfth conference since 1991, this time aboard the Queen Mary ocean liner docked in the harbor at Long Beach, California. Close to the Wind, edited by Michael Dylan Welch and William Hart, presents haiku and senryu by nearly a hundred conference participants. Many of the leading poets writing haiku in English are included. Together their poems suggest that creating a haiku is more akin to sailing the open sea than hunkering down in port.” —from the back cover