| Moonstruck by an'ya - Review by Aurora Antonovic |
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A book Review by Aurora Antonovic:Moonstruck, A Tanka Collection by an'ya publisher, the natal * light press, Oregon, USA 76 pages $16 ($18 Canada, $20 elsewhere), P.O. Box 102, Crescent, OR 97733 The name an'ya is synonymous in the Japanese-form world with high quality poetry. There is no one who seriously writes haiku or tanka who does not know who an'ya is, and who has not felt her influence. Tanka is a type of poetry that is older than haiku. In its English form, tanka consists of five unrhymed lines of thirty-one or less syllables. Typically, after line two or three, a pivot occurs, which swings the reader into another direction, although all five lines must ultimately harmoniously combine to offer one complete poem. Sounds difficult, doesn't it? Yet an'ya, in Moonstruck, does just that with grace and poise. Her image-driven observations of nature run through each work, yet somehow she leads us to her own personal emotions and experiences effortlessly. Moonstruck is a collection of love tanka. Love poetry is particularly hard to write well because the temptation to offer up cloying, clichéd images abound. Not so with an'ya's tanka. She neatly avoids any over-done sentimentality while still drawing upon powerful and time-tested topics with passion. An'ya's poetry is so visual, that I felt like I was holding a collection of art in my hands when I received this book. Each poem presents a perfect visual, an image that stays with the reader long after the five lines have been devoured.
For example:
Or: Moonstruck is a book for novices who want to learn the form, and for seasoned tanka writers who want to marvel at a craft well done. No matter how much tanka I read, I find myself always coming back to Moonstruck time and again for its beauty, skill, and art form. You will, too.
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