Irresistible Sonnets

by Mary Meriam (Editor)

The editor travelled for several decades throughout the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, and Australia (with side trips to Finland, France, and Greece) to collect the rarest, most beautiful, most irresistible contemporary sonnets. The trip was fruitful. Among many colorful characters, the editor found Old Tom in the garden, a bull rider from the American West, God's secretary in His Office, the magician's bashful daughter, and Aunt Mim and Uncle Jimmy at the Rehab Lounge. Published by Headmistress Press on March 31, 2014, "Irresistible Sonnets" consists of 71 sonnets by 71 living poets. There are city poets, country poets, older poets, younger poets, 43 women poets, 28 men poets, rising poets, and poets laureate.

114 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2014

Reviews

[Sherry Chandler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poets seem to find sonnets irresistible. Every poet tries at least one. The irresistible volume Mary Meriam has assembled presents sonnets written 71 poets from the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and the United States as well as poets who have ties to Finland, France, Japan, and Greece.

In these pages you'll find Italian sonnets, Shakespearian sonnets, and sonnets in a surprising variety of adaptations, including a ghazal sonnet, an acrostic sonnet, an Anglo-Saxon alliterative sonnet, free verse sonnets, an echo sonnet, sonnets with little skinny lines, a sonnet that uses lots of white space, funny sonnets, raunchy sonnets, and solemn sonnets.

The sonneteers are as well established as Marilyn Hacker, R. S. Gwynn, A. E. Stallings, and as obscure as I (that's my disclosure, my sonnet "Evening Song" is included). There is even an entry from the mysterious Noam D. Plume.

Some quotes from some of my particular favorites:

in the hall of the ruby-throated warbler

Jenny, sunny Jenny, beige-honey Jenny
sings the parsley up from the topsoil . . .

-- Rachael Briggs

God's Secretary

Her email in-box always overflows.
Her out-box doesn't get much use at all.
She puts on hold the umpteen-billionth call . . .

-- R. S. Gwynn

Three Visitors on Christmas Eve

Mist on moonspill      as midnight nears.
Adrift but not dreaming      our drowsy son
is covered and kissed. . . .

-- A. M. Juster

A Coat, A Hat and a Gun

Down these mean streets a man must go who needs
A lot of easy things he hasn't got,

-- John Whitworth

Irresistible Sonnets is an attractive volume, the font is nicely readable, and it is more than reasonably priced at $10.

With a new delight on every page, how can you go wrong?

[Rose Kelleher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Any anthology that has me in it deserves five stars.