The nuthatch, haiku and senryu

Revised Edition: LukivPress (Canada), 2022.

Previously published as six blackbirds (SchoolNet Africa [South Africa], 2003).

An excerpt

poplars

leafless at sunrise-

skeletons

A Note for Teachers

Students may have fun finding out which poems are haiku as opposed to senryu, according to my definition (in the book), or another. They may enjoy finding literary devices used (see, e.g., Ament, 2003 [References, in the book]), or enjoy placing the poems in categories; for example, winter versus spring versus summer versus autumn, humorous versus serious, sad versus happy, traditional versus modern, or satirical versus sober. They may wish to line up those philosophical. They may wish to make up their own categories. In the end, I hope the students' reading of the poems enriches their lives and encourages them to author their own moments.

The author

Dan Lukiv, published in 19 countries, is a poet, novelist, columnist, short story and article writer, and independent education researcher (hermeneutic phenomenology). As a creative writer, he apprenticed with Canada's Professor Robert Harlow (recipient of the George Woodcock Achievement award for an outstanding literary career), the USA's Paul Bagdon (Spur Award finalist for Best Original Paperback), and England's D. M. Thomas (recipient of the Cheltenham Prize for Literature, Orwell Prize [biography], Los Angeles Fiction Prize, and Cholmondeley award for poetry). He attended The University of British Columbia (creative writing department), the acclaimed Humber School for Writers (poetry writing program), and Writer's Digest University (novel writing program).