Sunlight & Cedar

by Ken Hada

In Sunlight and Cedar , the themes of Ken Hada's poetry remain constant to his earlier work. You will find poems of nature, ecology, family, isolation and social justice, with a little moral theology and philosophy thrown in. But what has changed in this collection is Hada's tone. It's a subtle change, but what one finds in this collection is a wiser and older poet who has begun to come to terms with life's disappointments, and thus you meet a poet who can revel evermore deeply in life's joys, however fleeting and few they are. This turn in the poet's mindset is signaled from the get-go with his masterful title poem Sunlight and Cedar in which he answers an apparent shortcoming of his work, it's preoccupation with cigars, sunlight and cedar, by asking, "Is it such a bad thing / to want to endure as cedar? / Is it a shortcoming? / to seek the light of the sun?" Clearly it is not, nor is it a bad thing to play dominoes with your dad, or to go camping with your son, or any of the scenes explored in these poems. So settle in for an evening or two with this fine collection of poems and enjoy the works of a master poet as he tries to remember something beyond words. -Alan Berecka

Genres: Poetry

Unknown Binding

Published January 1, 2020

Reviews

[Michelle Hartman · Rating 5 out of 5]

One reads book reviews to get a clear and unbiased view of a book. I can certainly be unbiased, but clear is gonna be a bit difficult in that, I can't figure out how to explain the feeling I get from this book. I've read all of Ken Hades books, and this one is no different in from and function, yet there is a feeling that this book is more personal. Hada, usually uses a first person point of view, so it's not that. It's that after reading this book, I feel I know more about what he feels, than what he thinks about stuff. And I'm dipped if I can explain why. Not only was it more personal, but at times it was even a bit a bit embarrassing as though I were peeping, or walking in at an inappropriate time. You simply have to buy this book, especially as a writer, and see if you can achieve the intimacies which he seems to throw out so easily.

[CullenWhisenhunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Though perhaps not as consistently strong as his best collections, Hada's Sunlight & Cedar has enough highlights to constitute an excellent collection of poetry. Settling back into his reflective, nature-based poetry, Hada's voice is as strong here as it ever has been, making this collection a joy to find and finish.