ORANGE: Elfchen Poems | The First English Book Crafted in the Elfchen Form

by Pushpa R. Menon

Orange is a curated collection of poems written in the Elfchen form — a poetic form of five lines with a 1-2-3-4-1-word count structure. It was born from a desire to say less, but feel more and began as a quiet and joy-filled exercise in observing the world. ‘Elfchen’ in German means diminutive of eleven. With its strict five-line, and minimal word count of eleven, it offered both a challenge and a quiet joy. It taught me to trim language down to its essence, to listen to the spaces between words, and to notice the poetry hiding in the ordinary. The poems explore the way certain words lean into each other, everyday objects, emotions, and metaphors. They include themes of nature, survival, silence, conflict and liberation. Devices like personification and contrast are used to provoke emotional and philosophical engagement. The intersection of word and image offers room for contemplation. This poetic form, lends itself to brevity, clarity, and restraint. The illustration that is paired with each poem is designed to enhance the meditative quality of the book. Each image becomes a metaphor, each poem a mirror to hold up a thought, memory, or mood.

Kindle Edition

Published December 5, 2025