New book of selected works by Alan Pizzarelli, “The Canary Funeral”

From the Author’s Note:
Back in 1920, the grandfather of one of my childhood friends held a huge funeral for his pet canary, “Jimmy.” The funeral was attended by more than ten thousand people and included a small white coffin, pallbearers, a hearse, and a 15-piece band playing a solemn dirge. The plaintive melody was accompanied by tears of laughter and merriment while moving through the streets of Little Italy in Newark, New Jersey.

In compiling this collection, I have selected haiku and senryu poems I wrote living in Newark’s first ward and other nearby towns. These poems are dedicated to the memory of the vanished Italian community of Little Italy and, of course, to “Jimmy” the canary.”

“

POEMS

burying a dead bird
the small boy
hums the wedding march

 

done
the shoeshine boy
snaps his rag

 

with no money
i go
snow viewing

“

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