Authors: From the Readers of The New York Times

Illustrator: James Gulliver Hancock
Category: Adult Fiction,  128 pages
Genre: Poetry
Publisher: Universe Publishing (imprint of Rizzoli)
Release date: March 2017
Content Rating: G

Book Description:

One hundred fifty
haiku on New York City
in just three lines each.

New York City Haiku collects 150 of the best haiku inspired by the Big Apple. These succinct three-line poems express not only the personal experiences of every New Yorker (or New Yorker at heart), but also the universal truths about living and loving everything that New York has to offer as well.

Written by poets of all ages and from across the country, this affordable and giftable collection creates an honest and often hilarious volume chronicling what New York is all about. A must-have for anyone who aspires to “make it there,” New York City Haiku is a thoughtful and fun testament to the city and its people.

Find out more at Rizzoli.

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My Review:

Reviewed by Laura Fabiani

When I was in high school, I learned how to write Haiku poetry and it quickly became one of my favorite forms of poetry. So when I saw New York City Haiku, I knew I wanted to read it. In 2014, The New York Times invited its readers to write about NYC in 3 lines. What happened? The readers responded to the challenge by sending in 2800 submissions in ten days!

I loved reading these haiku! They really captured the spirit of New York City, its people, places, food, culture and attitudes. I read some of them to my husband and we cracked up. Like this one:

Tourists in New York
Three abreast, strolling, chatting:
I want to shove you.

Others made us reflect, like those that featured the homeless or loneliness. The poems are creative and succinctly describe NYC and its people. I loved this one:

Rainy Monday, you
won't defeat my stilettos.
Red soles leap puddles.

The black and white illustrations are perfect for this book. They fit the tone of the book and whimsically capture NYC. Most of the poems are written by New Yorkers, but there are are some from readers in other states and even other countries.

If you love New York City and poetry, then you will love this neat little book. The fact that it contains poetry from people of all ages and backgrounds who share readership of  The New York Times makes this a unique collection about a unique city.

An entertaining, thought-provoking and worthy collection of haiku.

Disclosure: Thanks to Rizzoli for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.

The New York Times is a daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed internationally. Founded in 1851, the newspaper has won 95 Pulitzer Prizes, more than any other newspaper.

James Gulliver Hancock is an internationally noted illustrator of print ads and The Bowtie Book, and author of books including All the Buildings in New York.