
S&C‘s Paul Valentine finds much to appreciate in Portsmouth poet Sue Spier’s new book of haikus.
Like many, I have tried haiku and then left its comforting warmth. But I have a tremendous respect both for the form and for those who practise it. Having received an early copy of Sue Spiers’ latest collection, I realised that it would be difficult to give any review due diligence without living with it for a while. It is just the way haiku is; in some ways less than a philosophy, more than a poem; a mindful dive into a changing world. And so it is wonderfully apt for our current moment that is being radically reshaped by the insidious spectre of the Covid pandemic.
The 100 days of ‘Spiro Haiku’ is an up-and-down rollercoaster ride of ordinary life in extraordinary times. Several themes do eventually break through; the need to indulge in calorific food:
resistance undone
buy pepperoni pizza
and what-the-hell sweets
Followed by the need to burn off said calories:
two and a half stones
target weight, stage one achieved
heart and mood lighten
The colour blue (and pink), Hula Hoops, the need for comfort, and the activities of cats and ‘randy sparrows’:
Sparrow lovemaking
She: making herself ready
Him: hop on, hop off
Spiers also addresses family, boredom, politics, poetry itself; uplifts and failures, daily life, memories, walks and nature. Indeed, there is a world here to enjoy, given that the real world is somewhat devoid of it. Whether consciously or not, she stretches the very idiom of the haiku and the music of the form, like a sonata, drives right to the 100thendpiece.
For me, there are some truly sumptuous images of nature:
Hillside walk, pine scent
Dry needles crunch under foot
Open cone spills seed
River runs through it
Coppiced walks among willows
Wild creature solace
These lines contribute to an authentic representation of life experienced through the lockdown. The haiku on sparrow lovemaking is beautifully crafted, creating a mind-picture that we all know – simple life, brilliantly portrayed. If I were to be nitpicky, which I am generally not, I would suggest that if ‘Plague’ were to go to another edition, a gap should be left between title and date, or italics be used.
The honesty and precision of these poems are bound to make this collection last over time. The insights offered by ‘Plague’ alone justify reprints. There is such self-effacing honesty in them:
Fish and chips for tea
Slathered in baked bean sauce
Knife and fork stomach
I write poetry
Working class mentality
Middle class pursuit
There is also the paused loveliness that gives an aching pull to moments throughout everyone’s life that can be enjoyed through some of these wonderfully framed vignettes:
Deep blue and huge sea
Rocks my boat, mesmerises
Mirror to the sky
White painted villa
Cerulean blue shutter
With low corona
Green canopy,
Sparrow song, stream xylophone
Tree breath
Mountains to oceans
Strange creatures between
Endless ways to be
I end with this one which I find devastatingly beautiful and wonderfully positive in spite of the conditions within which it was written. In this review I really wanted the poems to speak for themselves as much as possible, rather than for me to just prattle away. I do hope I have achieved a good balance across what is a rather open, and sometimes an extensive range.
So thank you Sue Spiers for brightening a rather dull time of it by opening a window of fine perspective and understanding. If you, reader, enjoyed these little gems half as much as I did, you can obtain the book ‘Plague: A Season of Senryu’ from Sue Spiers for the sum of just £6, a pound of which goes to the charity ‘First Story for Young Writers Programme’ in memory of Sue Wrinch.