Jack Huber's Page

This Week's Poem
Gentle Open Arms

One knows they've crossed the Arizona line
when first they come upon the eerie sight-
a tall saguaro's gentle open arms
whose welcoming seems more that just polite.

A closer look reveals decaying holes,
each filled with nesting birds that come and go.
The shelter of its needles, and some height,
protects them from the predators below.

So recognized, its candelabra shape
can mask its age, a hundred fifty years;
perhaps there's fifty more of heat and wind
before this mellow giant disappears.

A hillside grove, saguaros by the score-
let all who visit share its keen rapport.


Copyright © 2009 by Jack Huber-
All rights reserved.


Reviews and TestimonialsJack Huber, a well traveled technical writer, has written a book of poems that show us he is as good with his pen as he is with a camera. With Jack, when these two creative processes diverge, watch out, you are in for a rare treat.His most recent poetry collection entitled “A Troupe in Masquerade” is both thought-provoking and visually refreshing as you accompany Jack on his numerous adventures around the country and the world, capturing images and matching them with words that touch your heart. In “Tranquility”, an Italian sonnet, he neatly juxtaposes the concept of the necessity for war vs. the tranquility that can be found in a more peaceful way to live, and is nicely done, leading us gently to a conclusion rather than battering us over the head with dire warnings. Although his sestina “A Picturesque Café” is based on a photo of a building, by the end of the poem it evokes a romantic streak in the reader. The poem is an ode to the place where he met his future wife, his "only one", a place where visitors immediately share in the warmth and friendliness of the coffee shop itself. All the romance of that special cafe is evident in this sweet little poem, inviting you to sit down, enjoy the conversation and warm yourself with a cup of coffee.
I would recommend this book to true lovers of poetry, as he also defines and explains several poetry forms in his preface, simplifying what is sometimes considered a rather mysterious form of writing.
--Diane Tegarden, Author
FireWalker Publications, Inc., www.firewalkerpublications.com

Jack Huber, poet and photographer, has an exquisite talent for melding his two passions. It is rare to find a modern poet who embraces traditional form with ease and eloquence. His style is unmistakable. It weaves current concepts with old fashioned storytelling together in a way which is truly enchanting.
--Holly Prikockis, Florence, KY

There are not many poets who stick to the tradition of flow, meter, rhyme and classical forms of poetry in this fast paced modern world. Jack uses them beautifully to describe both simple human emotions and complex life situations, to remind us where our roots are and what is really important in life. His use of photography is not to explain what images he had in mind when writing a poem, but rather to add images to the ones in a poem. His poetry and photography are therefore complementary and create a balanced symbiosis. Perhaps the following beautiful lines from his poem Tranquility can describe the essence of Jack’s vision and his skill as a poet:

I watch the sun sink slowly from the sky,
into horizon's widely open arms,
no city noise or army's battle cry,
just nature and the small surrounding farms.

Hope you enjoy this new collection of Jack’s poems as much as I did.
--Boris Kipnis, West Bloomfield, MI

Jack Huber writes delightfully down-to-earth poetry, with an unmistakably American feel to it. As a British Australian, Jack's writing frequently transports me across the globe, to find something universal or homey at the end of the journey.
--Stephen Lomax, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Once I found Jack Huber’s poem on a poetry site I immediately became interested in his work, not only because of his rhyming poetry, but also for the reason that I, being Australian, find Jack’s interesting topics on the recent history of America life and culture captured an element that is rarely highlighted outside of the United States and therefore gives the rest of us readers an opportunity to indulge in a colourful past. The photos added to each poem certainly help the reader to understand a situation accompanied with Jack’s descriptive writing.
--Lindsay Laurie, Irymple, Victoria, Australia

Reading Jack Huber's new poetry book reminds the reader that Jack is a modern master of the art of ecphrasis. An obscure word, it describes how one art, his poetry, relates to his second art, photography, evoking new feeling and epiphanies about both. Each skill plays to and reflects the vividness of each, speaking to the reader in a synergy. Whether free verse, sonnet, or haiku, Jack's skill and choice of form mirrors the feelings from picture and verse. Read and view these creative acts. His insights on the everyday visual world we live in will surprise.
--Jim Fowler, Watertown, MA

Jack Huber never fails to amaze me with his poetry, be it history or nature, not even graffiti on a wall slows him down with pen in hand as he breathes life into words for all to see.

Whether Sonnet, Villanelle or Sestina, he isn't afraid to try his hand at something new and I often go back to read again and again many of my favorites.

Always included are his unique pictures with narrative, a visual for the readers’ pleasure, a signature as unique as Jack himself.
--Maria E. Lewter, Savanna, IL

Jack Huber is a story teller at heart, and into his poems he weaves the grit and joy of life, as all good story tellers do. His versatility with language allows him to pay tribute to everything from Wyatt Earp to a beautiful moonrise. Add to that though, his extraordinary work with structure and you’ve got yourself a poet of both depth and breadth. At the end of each poem Jack’s readers experience the coup de theatre in one of his photographs that turn his work into something nearly three dimensional. Jack’s work reflects that he is someone who not only sees the fine stitching of life, but who also cares about it.
--Andrea Barton, Glastonbury, CT

When I read Jack's poetry I am taken on a wonderful journey, in time, when life was simple and people took pride in their country, their homes, and the places where they belonged, a time when people DID belong and knew their roots and were happy to share a part of themselves with others. His poetry reminds us of what we have lost and sometimes gaining nothing in return. Jack makes me want to go back and recapture that spirit and return to the simpler times when we knew right from wrong and weren't afraid to say we stood for something bigger than us. When you read his poetry you'll want to settle back in a cozy chair with a cup of tea and enjoy your journey.
--Bonita (Rivas) Johnson, Sumter, SC

Whenever I experience Jack Huber’s work, I feel like I am in a café listening to a seasoned traveler of both time and territory, telling me about what he has seen and who he has met. It is pure Americana.

His poetry and photos shimmer with romance and realism. They capture ordinary people and places with insight, wit, and sensitivity.
--Hugh Lemma, Avondale, AZ

To read Jack Huber is to be ethereally transported to places, scenes, mini-dramas, nostalgia, as well as harsh realities. Often the accompanying photos add such a sweet artistic touch that one feels like his silent partner or secret voyeur in their viewing.
His command of language and the poetic sense evokes great respect and admiration, and perhaps a bit of envy.
--Rhoda Rogers, Doylestown, PA

Jack Huber has a very fantastic way with words. He manages to paint vivid images in your mind with his knack for descriptive writing. After reading a piece written by Mr. Huber, I feel as though I have been to that forgotten saloon, or seen that same sunset through his eyes. He is very in tune with the world around him as he knows it and expresses his observations beautifully with his literary art.
--Haris Ntabakos, North Dighton, MA

Jack's writing was introduced to me through an American Poetry Website titled: 'Gotpoetry.com', I'm not from the U.S.A., but Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
I'm not stumped but when I think about the pieces of writing that I have read of his, though I do have to rethink and ponder at the depth and beauty of it.

Simply put I feel Jack loves his surroundings and politely shares his inner-most thoughts about the huge spectrum of his ideas/ideals and travels, which I see as a daunting task.
Not many would take on 'Albino Rock' in Utah and describe so well and with so much emotion the vision seen. Well placed words describe 'An eon's worth of battered scars and rippled cascades', such erosion and emotion over time was for me "like the introduction of a babies tooth", with the experience of worn fingers on a keyboard all too eager to share, to any a turned ear or eye and one was mine, picking up on 'The Western Landscape' as Jack likes to phrase it.

I have also thought of a poem of his titled, "Twilight" as I do love that time of the day myself which is also emotive. It displays the beauty of that time of day without getting mixed up with the traffic and noise that abounds in this 'cityscape' piece, but complimenting it as only Jack can do with two words 'Sharp Horizons.' He attached a wonderful picture of a cloud at 'Twilight' which perfectly matches his written words.

Attaching pictures (note: they are not too big as to get in the way of the readers' experience) … I feel Jack does add a fourth dimension to his much valued work.
As a final point I'd like to add that Jack adds a deeper reality to earthly functions through his acceptance or view of the continuous transformation that you and I live in.
--Andy Tozer, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Jack Huber's poetry rolls like the letter "R" off the tongue of a Hispanic. His rhymes are fresh; newly birthed from the cocoon of his mind. Jack Huber weaves the tales of his life into a nest of words where he nurtures each letter of each word into life lines.
--Sal Treppiedi, Albuquerque, NM