Larry Kimmel is one of the foremost poets working in tanka and related forms in English today, and it’s plain to see why. Outer Edges ranges from the traditional to the avant garde with the poise of a poet who is in full command of his art. Each poem rolls smoothly off his pen with the lyric grace of a ballerina, yet he has written some of the most complex tanka existing in English. The craftsmanship is invisible, as good craftsmanship should be. The casual reader will delight in the supple flow of words that wraps the reader in their magic spell, but the astute reader will be fascinated by the interplay of Eastern and Western subtleties. Kimmel has the courage to mingle the contemporary with the traditional and his vocabulary and format always serve the best interest of the poem. His rhythm is dance-like as he weaves ornaments, then returns to his themes in a waltz of words gliding across the page. The theme is the daily life of a man who is aware that he has passed his prime, but who has not yet passed his life. He is very much alive and has the assurance of his maturity to accept himself and his world as they are. There are regrets, yes, but they are tempered with humor and supported by the knowledge that the sunset is to be savored as much as the dawn. - M. Kei, author of January, A Tanka Diary