Destined to become an instant classic, Passages: Haiku through the Seasons is an enchanting collection in five languages. Written by celebrated haiku poet Sonia Coman, whose first haiku poem at age 10 was shared across Japan by one of the country’s leading tea companies, Passages invites us to explore the many facets of the diamond of the everyday and the beauty of life between heartache and promise. Presented with original illustrations from the author, the haiku in Passages take you from the humorous to the sublime to the soaring and back again. Enjoy the journey.
Pure poetry. Deeply moving. Reading PASSAGES fills my heart with joy.
Rev. Howard Lee Kilby, Former Secretary, The Haiku Society of America
Sonia Coman’s haiku surely heals readers’ minds.
Yasuomi Koganei, Director, The Meguro International Haiku Circle (Tokyo)
Sonia Coman has come a long way from the landmark set by Harold G. Henderson, with her elegant haiku style in her languages and her own haiga mode.
Shokan T. Kondo, Professor Emeritus of Seikei University (Tokyo)
Sonia Coman, PhD, has given readers of poetry something special and very lovely. Her collection of Haiku verses holds one's attention by the sheer variety and beauty of the Haiku form and by the interesting range of subject-matter. We are not surprised that the book has been well received and promoted by the American Haiku Society. The design of the book, its physical layout, and especially its graceful illustrations, contribute considerably to its overall impact and success. My husband and I ordered extra copies, to use as gifts. We shall be watching for continuing good work from Dr. Coman.
Maureen E. Mulvihill, PhD., Princeton Research Forum, NJ.
Is it possible to read and meditate at the same time? That was my experience as I turned the pages of Sonia Coman's elegant little book. In our world of excess and overstimulation, these short poems are refreshingly sublime. Sonia's haikus will walk you down a country road, over a bridge, up a mountain, or across a train track. In a mere handful of words, her poems conjure up your own nostalgia for the seasons and the vivid emotions they evoke. You feel the pangs of her longing and the peaks of her curiosity. You observe the world in all its sensuality through her eyes and heart. And all of this is conveyed in so few words. Each haiku is happily accompanied by Sonia's translation into French, Italian, Japanese, or Romanian. Even if you know nothing of those languages, you are transported to another world simply by the beauty in the brevity of the translations. Some of the poems are illustrated by Sonia, which further adds to their sense of immediacy. These poems are passages that Sonia has traveled in the moments, the days, and the years of her life. Reading this lovely book, filled with graceful writing, will bring you joy. It will fill you with serenity and lower your blood pressure. Thank you, Sonia, for sharing your worldview with us.
Andrea Mosbacher
