Nick Virgilio:A Life in Haiku

by Nicholas A. Virgilio, Raffael De Gruttola (Editor), Kathleen O'Toole (Afterword)

Nick Virgilio, who started writing in the 1960s and was a pioneer of American haiku poetry, penned some of this country’s most elegiac and memorable haiku. Born and bred in Camden, New Jersey, he was a legend to some, an inspiration to others. He spent countless hours in his cellar at his Remington typewriter, writing haiku about nature, the people of Camden and south Philadelphia, and his family. In particular, he detailed the deep sense of loss that affected him and his family when his youngest brother, Larry, was killed in Vietnam. Edited and introduced by Raffael de Gruttola, a haiku poet and former president of the Haiku Society of America, " A Life in Haiku" includes more than 100 newly discovered haiku as well as old favorites, essays on the craft of writing, excerpts of an interview with Nick on “Radio Times” in Philadelphia, a tribute by Michael Doyle of Sacred Heart Church, family photos and replicas of original manuscript pages from the Rutgers University archive in Camden, N.J., where Nick’s papers are kept. It is a perfect companion for haiku lovers, urban poetry enthusiasts, combat veterans and their families as well as high school/college writing classes whose students will enjoy its easily accessible and deeply moving poetry, its glimpse inside the writing process and its encouragement of new authors. Readers will gain a strong sense of this great haiku poet and his life in Camden and an appreciation of the power of haiku as a form of poetry. An afterword by poet Kathleen O’toole spells out Nick’s legacy as one of the most beloved and influential haiku poets in America. -----------------------“…Nick has mined beauty out of the gutters of Camden. ..” Michael Doyle, Sacred Heart Church, Camden, N.J. “…Virgilio was intensely American, with a generosity of heart and spirit that recall Walt Whitman,” said Rod Willmot, a Canadian haiku poet and former publisher of Burnt Lake Press, which issued Virgilio’s first book. “He was a people’s poet, touching readers through the universality of what moved him and the honesty and dedication with which he wrote.” “…called by many this country’s foremost haiku poet.” Marty Moss-Coane, host of “Radio Times,” WHYY, Philadelphia

Genres: Poetry

158 pages, Paperback

First published February 22, 2012

Reviews

[Harley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read the haiku of Nick Virgilio in haiku magazines in the 1980s. I also read his haiku in the The Haiku Anthology edited by Cor Van Den Heuvel. This is the first collection of his haiku that I have read. One of my favorite haiku by Virgilio is:

the sack of kittens
sinking in the icy creek
increases the cold

Farmers sometimes kill litters of baby kittens because there are too many cats on the farm. In this haiku, we see the farmer standing by the creek watching the sack sink into the icy water. He is not happy that he has to kill the kittens, but he knows it is for the best so they don't starve to death. Yet he is uncomfortable and maybe even thinking of his own death. It is winter and there is snow on the fields. The farmer has some time on his hands. The harvest is over and spring is still weeks away. Watching the kittens die, the farmer feels a shiver through his body.

In the world of haiku, Nick Virgilio is known for the haiku he wrote about his brother who died in Vietnam. This is one of my favorites:

deep in rank grass,
through a bullet- riddled helmet:
an unknown flower

Here the poet walking through a war-torn countryside comes upon a soldier's helmet and is surprised to see a flower popping through the holes in the helmet. Even in death, there is life. Just as the owner of the helmet is unknown to the poet so is the flower. And yet that is okay. We can not know everything. No matter how violent life is, we can always find some beauty.

In one of the essays in the book, Virgilio compares himself to the Japanese haiku poet, Buson, in that like Buson he composes him poems. For him it is not based simply on an experienced moment. He would write and rewrite the haiku until he was satisfied. The helmet poem above was inspired a photograph he saw in a newspaper in 1967. The last line came to him during a conversation he was having with a friend.

In an interview published in the book, Virgilio discusses a haiku he created to communicate receiving the news of his brother's death.

telegram in hand,
shadow of the marine
darkens our screen door

In these eleven short words, Virgilio captures the essence of the moment. The poet is focused on the small things: the shadow and the screen door. He may even be in denial. He is staying at the edges of the truth. And yet he knows the truth is there: his brother is dead. He doesn't want to face it head on.

I highly recommend this book of haiku poetry by one of America's best haiku poets to all poets and lovers of poetry.

[John Pappas · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is nearly impossible to overstate the impact Nick Virgilio has had on North American haiku, and haiku in general. Influential in moving the form away from the formal strictures that governed haiku practitioners when the form first hit United States shores (and third-grade classrooms everywhere), Nick's haiku are spare, gorgeous creations that reward multiple readings. Drawing from his life and experiences in Camden, NJ and traveling with the Navy, as well as, most notably, the death of his younger brother in Vietnam, Nick's poems can seem both traditional and urban -- humble and individual, reflecting details from Nick's observations walking around his town and its environs, all the while tapping into vast universal sentiments.

This collection includes some of NIck's previously published work, some unpublished haiku from the vast repository housed at Rutgers University, interviews with NIck and essays by Nick, as well as a beautiful foreword, afterword, and also a loving tribute from Nick's friend and pastor. Family photos and photographed pages from Nick's original typed manuscripts (including drafts and notes) are also included. Someday, scholars will write about the influence of Catholicism on his work, his proximity to Basho, Buson and Issa, the importance of Camden flora and fauna to his work, and the influence Nick had on the relaxing of the kigo in North American haiku. This collection points to that, but does not allow the context, biography or academic theorizing to get in the way of the pure poetry and musicality of Nick's work.

It may seem incongruous that Nick is buried in a Camden cemetery next to Walt Whitman. On the surface they might seem to have little in common. But what Whitman accomplished in his verbose lists and catalogues, infinitely detailing the American experience, Nick does by reflecting his large-heartedness inward: the spare gems he left allow readers to examine crystallized emotion and focus on the uniqueness of experience, the uniqueness of Nick's experiences as well as the reader's.

[Jim Krotzman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this collection of Nick Virgilio's haiku along with the foreword and afterword. Nick's essays on writing haiku were enlightening. This book will be used as a resource over & over. His haiku about his brother Lawrence who died in Vietnam in 1967 are especially haunting. The best is on the cover of the book.

[Danny Frankwich · Rating 4 out of 5]

masterful haiku as usual. the interview provided great insight, and the photos were grounding. i actively sought out more virgilio after reading selected haiku (1988), which i think was better - but that one has the advantage of not being post mortem.

[Liam Malone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Over the past few years, I delved more and more into Haiku. What I like about this form is its immediacy and shared emotion. I feel and see the image.

Nick Virgilio starting writing haiku in the 1960s. Curiously enough, in third grade in 1968 our teacher, a Catholic nun, introduced us to haiku. She had us write them too. It never occurred to me then that this was a blossoming form in the US. I just remember a fascination with the 5-7-5 syllabic format and hint at nature and season.

Nick's poetry is terrific. This book is also terrific because it presents enough of his biography and non-haiku writings for resonating in the haiku. Many of them are somber, reflecting the loss of family members in particular his younger brother in the Vietnam War. Nick seems to have a lived a quiet, almost monkish life. Others present wonderfully his living in Camden, New Jersey.

This collection was culled from what are purported to be thousands of haiku in his archives at Rutgers.

[Carmen Sterba]

Nick Virgilio: A Life in Haiku stands out among haiku books. It a biography of a loved and famous international haiku poet. The combination of essays, interviews, a tribute and photos offer such a rich history along with so many of Nick's exquisite and relevant haiku.

The publisher is Rick Black of Turtle Light Press. Editing and introduction by Raffael de Gruttola. Afterword by Kathleen O'Toole.