by Alison

layers of ice crack

beneath our feet as we search

for our parked car

by Kelly

a gust of wind

rattles the chimney — Hubby

turns up the TV

by Alison

today’s sun is not

as bright as yesterday’s moon -

the wind blows fiercely

by Kelly

high up overhead

lone squirrel hops on bare tree branch

the dogs go running

by Alison

unpacked boxes of

receipts, checkbooks, catalogs

give me agita

by Kelly

a hot cup of tea

a cookie, a fireplace

a mystery and me

by Kelly

How is it that I have never heard of Andrew Vachss? He’s an accomplished author with well over 20 books to his name! On Amazon, reviewers heap praise all over his Burke series, a collection of 18 books about a private eye who avenges abused children.

Ah…but that’s it. He’s classified as a “mystery/thriller” writer. His books appear on the shelves along with Vince Flynn, Daniel Silva and Michael Crichton. I don’t spend much time in that part of the bookstore.

But perhaps maybe I should. Who knows which of these authors is nursing a quiet love of haiku? Turns out, Andrew Vachss is.

His newest novel is called Haiku. It’s a stand-alone work, having nothing to do with his long-running series.

In it, a group of homeless men band together on the streets of LA.

The unofficial leader of the group is a man called Ho. Ho, an elderly Japanese man, walked away his comfy life as a highly respected and admired martial arts master after a piece of advice he offered a student ended in her murder.

Ho can not come to terms with his role in her death. Thinking back on the moment she asked for advice, he believes he was dismissive of her request, that he spoke to her with an air of arrogance born from his inflated title.

Because of this, he leaves everything behind to pursue a life without any trappings in hopes that someday he’ll be able to write one solitary haiku that reflects his true spirit.

Before he can do that, however, he must survive on the streets. To do that, he needs friends. Enter the rest of the characters in this book. Each has his own demons and all are far from perfect. Together, though, they are able to pool their resources to save one of their own.

The book is not filled with haiku. Instead, it is the idea of being able to write one perfect haiku that pulls the main character through to the end.

The book wasn’t as tension-filled and suspenseful as I expected a “thriller” to be. It was much more contemplative. There was an active plot, a real problem that needed fixing, but there was also a strange sub-plot that got a lot of attention up front but then never amounted to much. Yet, overall, I enjoyed the story, and walked away curious about the author’s other works.

Which is how I ended up at the Andrew Vachss web site, which is where I found a page of his own haiku. This one, in particular, seemed fitting of a mystery writer:

When winter vanished

I searched, only to find you

Missing and presumed

If you check out the rest of Andrew Vachss’s haiku, I suggest you click on the last two. Each of them links to a accompanying cartoon.

by Alison

icy trees sparkle

amongst lonely homes and fields -

snow keeps crashing down

by Kelly

I overhear him

telling our how’d-you-meet tale –

early Valentine

by Alison

lavender undies

with black lace trim and silk bows -

puppy’s new chew toy