A Different Distance : A Renga

A Different Distance: A Renga by Marilyn Hacker and Karthika Naïr is a collaborative poetry collection born during the global coronavirus lockdown of 2020. Written in the traditional Japanese renga form, the book captures a year of shared uncertainty through alternating tanka exchanged between two poets living only miles apart yet separated by circumstance. Their poetic correspondence reflects on isolation, resilience, friendship and the enduring connections that persisted during an unprecedented moment in history.

Spanning the changing seasons of the pandemic, A Different Distance: A Renga intertwines personal experiences with universal themes of grief, illness, hope and solidarity. The result is a thoughtful literary record of a period that reshaped lives across the world while affirming a shared sense of humanity.

About This Book

Inspired by the ancient Japanese tradition of collaborative poetry, the collection unfolds as a conversation in verse between Marilyn Hacker and Karthika Naïr. Beginning in the early days of the pandemic, their poems respond to one another across time, documenting everyday realities alongside moments of reflection and emotional connection.

The poems explore experiences including illness, ageing, the loss of friends, concern for loved ones across different countries and the rhythms of life during lockdown. Moving between poignant and playful tones, the collection demonstrates how poetry can bear witness to history while creating space for empathy, remembrance and collective resilience.

What You'll Discover

• A collaborative poetry collection written during the 2020 coronavirus lockdown.
• The traditional Japanese renga form composed through alternating tanka.
• Reflections on isolation, friendship and shared human experience.
• Poems exploring grief, illness, ageing and resilience.
• Observations spanning a year marked by the changing course of the pandemic.
• A literary dialogue between Marilyn Hacker and Karthika Naïr.

Perfect For

• Readers of contemporary poetry.
• Poetry enthusiasts interested in the renga tradition.
• Readers exploring literature inspired by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Those interested in collaborative and cross-cultural literary works.

Why You'll Love This Book

A Different Distance: A Renga offers an intimate and deeply reflective poetic conversation that documents an extraordinary period in recent history. By blending personal experience with shared global realities, Marilyn Hacker and Karthika Naïr create a collection that resonates with compassion, resilience and the enduring power of human connection.