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“a mourning dove hung /
on the wire line one evening /
like a long soft blade.”
// George Brooks
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Between 1960 and 1963, the renowned Wisconsin writer, poet, and lecturer August Derleth (1909–1971) edited and published a magazine under the title Hawk & Whippoorwill. The saddle-stitch journal was devoted to “poems of man and nature”, and though it was simply designed, it was widely esteemed for its uncommon integrity. Contributors included James T. Farrell, John Beecher, Felix Stefanile, Carleton Drewry, and Helga Sandburg.
It is our pleasure to welcome you to the inaugural issue of the revived Hawk & Whippoorwill. We are grateful to have the endorsement and support of April Derleth, who is now the head of Arkham House, the publishing firm founded by her father. We are also grateful to the poets who submitted their work to this volume and to the staff whose diligence helped make the journal that you now hold possible.
In keeping with the format of the original, our journal is a slim volume which keeps a tight focus on the poems themselves and on the relationship between nature and humanity. The poems speak with one another — and, we hope, to something in our readers’ feelings and thoughts. Thank you for picking up a copy, and enjoy.
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Left: standard cover
Right: torn paper landscape collage cover by
artist Hannah de Keijzer |
This issue was edited by Matthew Kelsey & Jon Wooding, with the assistance of Zachary Bos, Nora Delaney, Leah Falk, Emilie Heilig and Erin McDonough. Design by Daniel Pritchard. © 2008. All rights reserved by contributors and editors for their respective work. Texts may not be reproduced other than for personal or academic use without written permission of the author or editor. Reviewers are encouraged to excerpt when reviewing.
