Rumblestrips

First published in Woodnotes #27, Winter 1995, page 53.

Rumblestrips by John Sheirer. First Blade Publishers, 1995, 64 pages, paperback, 5½ by 8 inches. $6.50 postpaid from the author at Asnuntuck Community-Technical College, 170 Elm Street, Enfield, Connecticut 06082 [address no longer correct]. Among haiku books, Rumblestrips is one of the best surprises of 1995. An engaging collection of 115 haiku, senryu, and visual poems (previously published in 27 different journals), this book ranges deftly among sensitive and humorous topics, dancing through honesty and romance. Amid wordplay and joy and sadness, you’ll find many arresting moments, immediate and empathetic poems, as well as one or two from the imagination. Three of many favourites from this recommended delight:

in the back of the closet

dry leaves

cling to jogging shoes

rumblestrips

then

alert again

wanting to touch her face

but these pockets

around my hands