Anyone who loves poetry, and sonnets, in particular, will be thrilled after reading Paul Buchheit's splendid collection of poems, Sonnets of Love and Joy. In this collection, the author will captivate readers with deep and refined sonnets in which vivid images and evocative words abound. This fabulous collection is divided into five sections dedicated to love, family and friends, nature, the seasons, and the joy of children. Moreover, readers will be inspired by the beautiful images they find on every page of the book.

There are poets who know how to touch the hearts of their readers with their verses, and this is what happens when one reads Sonnets of Love and Joy. Paul Buchheit is among the best poets I have found recently, and I love this collection of sonnets. I believe the best feature is that he masterfully uses words and images to convey emotions a reader rarely feels. Whether you read the section dedicated to love, the seasons, or the family, you will be equally fascinated by our poet's sensitivity and the accuracy with which he describes feelings, nature, or people. This book is precious not only for the quality of the sonnets but also for the emotions it conveys. I must also add that the images are perfect and bring color and emotion to this wonderful book. I recommend Sonnets of Love and Joy to readers who are looking for a collection of refined poetry and who believe this literary form should always be of exceptional quality.

There are many kinds of love, primarily love of passion and love of joy, love of nature, and pure love of life. Love affects us all differently at different times of our life. There is the love of family when we’re young and then again it resurfaces many times and in varying ways throughout our lives. There is the love of friends and the passionate love of a significant other. And there is a love found in memories, childhood memories full of love and adventure: “A minstrel’s lyric on a city street/ betrays a time long gone, a memory/ held captive by a siren’s song: retreat/ is my indulgence, to a panoply/ of silver maples…” Friends can be family and family can be friends and there’s always that special someone in our lives, like a grandparent: “I see his face,/ like drought on furrowed earth, tobacco stains/ on checkered shirt, a coarse guffaw, a trace/ of mischief in his manner as he feigns/ amusement at some nonsense from a child.” Such powerful analogies, and metaphors color the image of a special grandfather. I can almost see my own special grandfather in this sonnet.

Paul Buchheit’s chapbook, Sonnets of Love and Joy, is everything its title suggests and more. Using the classic form of the sonnet, mostly in Shakespearean form, the poet accompanies each sonnet with an image. Some of the images are works of art, while other images are photographs of family, friends, and even beauty found in nature. Each image aptly provides a visual of the prophetic nature of the verse that follows. The poet has a strong command of the English language and, like Shakespeare, weaves his magic through words, metaphors, and similes. This collection of sonnets is pure joy to read and savor many times over.