Book of the Week: LapisLazuli Haiku

Ruth Franke had a surprising influence on English-language haiku despite writing only in German. Her book of haibun, Schwerelos Gleiten / Slipping Through Water, was well-received (in part for its evocative paintings by Reinhard Stangl), and the design of this current book of instruction (Mafora Verlag, 2002) unusual and innovative. We challenge your command of German by offering these samples without translation.

You can read the entire book in the THF Digital Library.

Do you have a chapbook published 2010 or earlier you would like featured as a Book of the Week? Contact us for details.

Haiku featured in the Book of the Week Archive are selected by THF president THF president Jim Kacian, and are used with permission.

Umarmung im Park
auf Distanz — es brennt noch
die Zigarette
Hinter den Dünen
auf dem Strand meiner Jugend
einer Ölleitung
Im letzten Herbstlicht
pflanzt er einen Apfelbaum
für seine Enkel