Monday, May 20, 2013

Amazing Stories: Reviews: Inhuman / Edible Zoo

With that uninspired title (That was the working title of the post and I simply forgot to come up with something more interesting), I've published my next set of reviews for Amazing Stories. This time - Zombies and exotic animal fare.

I've reviewed collections by two Science Fiction Poetry Association members: Inhuman: Haiku from the Zombie Apocalypse, by Joshua Gage and The Edible Zoo, by David C. Kopaska-Merkel. The latter is a collection of poetry for children, silly in the manner of Dr. Seuss.

Here's a teaser:

OK, imagine yourself witnessing the dawn of a zombie apocalypse, then as the Living Dead begin to outnumber the Living Living and then as the surviving uninfected band together (or not, as the case may be). What kind of horrors would you see? Joshua Gage, a poet specializing in the short short forms, has plentiful suggestions as well as a few looks through the eyes of a zombie.

This slim volume is broken into four sections, or acts and really does tell a dramatic story. It contains only haiku, of which Gage is a master (not that I’m much of an expert but It Is Said). Gage edited the 2011 and 2012 Dwarf Stars Anthology produced by the Science Fiction Poetry Association and showcases the best poetry under 10 lines. I talked a little bit about haiku/scifaiku in my last post when I reviewed Cthulhu Haiku and Other Mythos Madness. To be honest, I was slightly distracted by all the poetry that was NOT haiku in that collection, but in this one there are no such distractions and you really get a sense of what haiku is and can do, even with the mono-theme of ZOMBIES.
 Please head over to the Amazing Stories website (here) for the full review! I hope you enjoy!

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