Heidi Blakeslee's review of Su Zi's CHIRP (Hysterical Books Press 2019)

First, Chirp is a consummate work of art.  From the minimalist title to the quirky colorful cover, this book stands out visually.  But inside.  Inside is all of the nature bird magic I had hoped for and then more.

The entire work is wonderfully and lovingly crafted into strict haiku stanzas.  There are no titles, rather the work flows consistently from the beginning to the end.  All bird names and many words depicting nature are capitalized, while oftentimes new stanzas are not.  The effect is brilliantly jarring at times and achingly lovely in turns, much like a bird sighting.  It gives me the feeling that nature is being revered and deserves the extra dignity of a capitalized descriptor.

Digging deeper, some stanzas kept me saying “damn” under my breath.  The amount of restraint and imagination that it must have taken to write a book of this magnitude should be respected.  The selection of descriptor words chosen for each stanza is flawless.  I have never read a work like this, and probably won’t again.  No word is out of place.

I think of Basho.  I think of Adrienne Rich.  I can picture myself in the woods jotting down every bird call and every colorful wing I saw.  The work captures the spirituality of time spent in nature.  Jam-packed with honesty, color, and lyrical precision, “Chirp” is a joy to read.  Su Zi just gets it.

From page 21:

new leaves glow under

ambling clouds gray with promise.

Time past, parents wed.

at morning, scrubjays

collective conversation

matches the gray wind.

prodigal, their white 

elliptical strut hunts bugs

no regrets, Egrets.

afternoon, Mockingbird 

Griot of his odyssey

some lost, ancient songs.