Volume 2 of the exciting new Bright Stars anthology is packed with hundreds of poems by established and emerging poets as they explore a full range of subjects and approaches. Containing tanka, kyoka, gogyoshi, tanka prose and tanka sequences, this issue also includes experiments in one and three line tanka, as well as sedoka, the ancient six line form rarely seen today.

Bright Stars, An Organic Tanka Anthology, is in its third volume and still going strong. Poets from around the world are contributing tanka, kyoka, gogyoshi, sedoka, and more--innovative, diverse, and engaging poems that open up the myriad possibilities of this small yet potent form of poetry. Bright Stars focuses on the Japanese aesthetic of 'akarui'--bright, loud, energetic, urban, exciting, and experimental. Bright Stars is opening avenues to novices and experts alike.

Joy McCall takes a keen interest in everything from her children to the local crooks and drunks, artisans, madwomen, and ghosts. The supernatural is as real to her as the material world and the dead populate her poems along with the living. The fleshless rabbi walking his haunted corridor reminds her that Norwich was the origin of the Blood Libel against the Jews, while not far away the witches still dance among the standing stones. Old churches, old pubs, and old graves tell stories to those that listen amid the scattered needles and barroom fights of the present day.

Fire Pearls 2: Short Masterpieces of Love and Passion is a worthy successor to the classic of contemporary tanka poetry. Covering all aspects of love and passion, from the delights of first love to the agony of abortion, over 90 poets featured in 750 poems present every aspect of the human heart from the romantic to the desperate. Edited and with an introduction by the well-known poet and editor, M. Kei, Fire Pearls 2 is an essential acquisition for lovers of fine literature.

"a book which can stand comparison with C. S. Forester's Hornblower." Alex Beecroft, author of 'False Colors' Peter Thorton and his lover set out on a quest to rescue a captive duke who is the pretender to the throne of Portugal. Thorton is arrested by the British and placed on trial for the crimes of desertion and sodomy. Captain Tangle returns and clashes with the dour but resourceful Captain Horner in a fatal battle in which Thorton's life-and honor-hangs in the balance. Men of Honor continues the further adventures of a gay officer during the Age of Sail, replete with perils, excitement, and nautical detail.

In an exotic and magical land, Shuibai, a lowly bucket-maker, is appointed Fire Warden. He surprises and annoys everyone by taking his job seriously. Yet as he attempts to keep his city safe from fire, he finds his own life in peril as he stumbles across dangerous secrets. Mysterious foes are smuggling illegal guns into his city, and they will stop at nothing, not even arson, kidnapping, and murder, as they wage their secret war. He is helped by the man he loves, the handsome but crippled ex-firefighter, Zashi, a man tormented by demons of his own. Is the Fire Dragon real, or is the truth far more sinister?

Opening with the cold days of January and following the poet through a year of his life, "January, A Tanka Diary, " is the latest collection from the internationally respected tanka poet and editor, M. Kei. Melancholy, hopeful, or satiric, these are poems alive to the beauty of the world that surrounds us. He has the ability to capture subjects as small as a single snowflake or as big as history, all told with an intimate honesty. In Kei's hands, the ancient five line tanka poem breathes with contemporary life.

"Step inside this book and meet a magician-a man who knows the secrets of the sea and the land and the sky; a man who can catch the vastness of oceans and the smallness of sparrows in the same few words in five lines."-Joy McCall, author "of circling smoke, scattered bones"

Back in service with the British navy, Lt. Peter Thorton suffers misfortunes in love and war. Temporarily placed in charge of His Britannic Majesty's frigate Ajax, he is badly outnumbered by the vengeful Spanish and must fight his way free with the assistance of the dishonored HMS Resolute. On the way back to England he must ferret out mutiny and balance friendship against honor, only to be arrested once again, and face a final showdown with his old nemesis, Captain Bishop.

Man in the Crescent Moon is the latest adventure in the swashbuckling Pirates of the Narrow Seas series. Isam Tangueli is a gangly youth of nineteen, longing to leave home and become a famous corsair, and trying to understand his attraction to men. He joins the crew of the Grey Wolf and fights the Spanish on land, at sea, and under water. Under the command of the short but feisty Rajet Rais, young Isam learns the skills of navigation and leadership necessary to become "Captain Tangle," the most notorious corsair of the age. The hallmarks of the Pirates of the Narrow Seas series are all present-diverse and engaging characters, storms at sea, desperate ship fights, hand-to-hand combat, captures, rescues, and escapes, all told with authentic detail. "Isam Agha Hamet saw his father killed and vowed to become a great corsair. But working with his uncle on their galley will not lead to fame and fortune. When Rajet Rais and the Grey Wolf seek refuge and the Spanish attack he must seize the opportunity to fulfil his dream. But will love for a slave stop him."--Astrodene's Historic Naval Fiction

Contemporary tanka in English is an exciting literature that continues to grow and develop in the hands of increasing diverse poets around the world. Originating in Japan over fourteen hundred years ago, it remains a strong and flexible form evoking profound responses in the reader. Although a tanka may be as small as a pebble, it creates expanding ripples in the mind of a receptive reader, ripples that touch far shores, with the polished perfection of the poem as the still center of meaning and experience. This year's team consisting of M. Kei (USA), Editor-in-chief, Patricia Prime (NZ), Magdalena Dale (RO), Amelia Fielden (AU/JP), Claire Everett (UK), Owen Bullock (NZ), David Terelinck (AU), Janick Belleau (CAN), David Rice (USA), read over eighteen thousand poems to select the best for inclusion in this, the final volume in the must-read series.