HAIKU BY RICHARD WRIGHT

​i admit it, I didn't like "Native Son" the movie so much that, I couldn't force myself to read it.
But his "Haiku" made up for it.

It's so interesting to observe the diversity within one writer. You know the saying, "don't judge a book by its cover", well, don't judge an author by just one book.
even though...yes, my experience is that many of us do judge/decide on whether to pick up a book by its cover, but that's another post.
back to Richard Wright...
guess what? people change...
just like you and I do, thankfully.
Haiku was written during the last few years of Wright's life. His daughter Julia Wright said he wrote it, "to spin these poems of light out of the gathering darkness." This book was so inspiring to me that I wrote my own book (to be published) of Haiku. Once I understood the rhythm/formula - 3 lines total; 5, then 7, then 5 syllables per line... it became so much fun to write. It felt almost like a math problem. I invite you to try it too.
This book has over 800 haiku he selected from thousands he wrote. Here are 3 of my favorites:

A black mountain peak
Is arching a summer sky
And its just-felt moon.

Dazzling summer sun!
But the smell of the past comes
With rain upon the dust.

The blue of this sky
Sounds so loud that it can be heard
Only with our eyes
It's truly hard to choose.

If you're wondering, no I didn't like them all... there are a handful that are outright rank in my opinion... BUT, he makes it easy to just move along to the next one. The backstory regarding Wrights' process for deciding which haiku to include in the book is so interesting. His daughter describes how he wrote each one on a sheet of paper and hung it up on steel rods as if to dry in the air. He'd ponder over each one. Since his health was failing at that point, his daughter now believes his poems were "self-developed antidotes against illness." The artist's process is so unique.

Do you have a special process you'd like to share?

Special thanks to Phyllis Yafah Duncan for suggesting I do a post for Poetry Month. And, thanks to Liz LaRue for sharing your father's request that led me to stumble upon Wright's poetry. Does anyone know of any poetry readings this month? please share them in the comments.
In addition to Richard Wright's poetry, I like Oscar Brown Jr's, and Gil Scott Heron's, of course. I respect their work and hopefully there will be a book forthcoming that includes "The Revolution will not be televised" or Brown's "Afro Blue." Maggie Brown is doing an excellent job of carrying his legacy forward.

who are your favorite poets?

If you'd like to check out "Haiku" by Richard Wright feel free to visit our site. I'll also make mention of it in the comments below.
Richard Wright was so prolific with over 20 books and hundreds of articles throughout his life.
Which of his books have you read?

Want to Know More?

As always, I appreciate that you have read through this blog post.  I hope that you’ve become curious to read more of "Haiku:  The Last Poems of an American Icon" by Richard Wright.  We ask that you consider purchasing your books from our Black owned bookstore, Afriware Books, Co.  If there is a title you’d like to purchase that is not mentioned here, or could not be found on the website, feel free to email us at:  [email protected]