Visible Magic is a collection of haiku from a Kentucky lawyer observing his family farm over the course of two years. As peculiar as it may seem, the eclectic mixture of an Ohio River Valley attorney employing Japanese-styled wordcraft to expound on a localized agrarian American countryside really works. Charles D. Williams finds and celebrates beauty in his backyard (which in this case is West Wind Farm, a multi-generational family property in Munfordville, Kentucky).

The "Visible" adjective of this poetry book's title is very intentional and extremely literal. Sure, several poems evoke the four other senses, but sight is emphasized. There's a strong reliance on the natural wonders caught by his eyes. Colors are invoked that might not be initially associated with a farm. Of course, many shades of green, gold and brown are included in these poems, but Williams employs a subtle sorcery that reveals the more surprising colors of nature's palette. He shared glimpses of glowing silver pine needles, purple fields of April magic, pears blushing red and the myriad rainbow of butterfly wings. Even though he's reacting to a very specific location, his use of color is broad-styled and can be shared by any one from any place. You don't have to specifically know what West Wind Farm looks like to appreciate and understand the beauty of a grasshopper sleeping in a robin's feather.

Another interesting element of Visible Magic is the two-year time frame. Each haiku has a date, many with a brief description that contextualizes the day's observation. The verb tense is nigh-exclusively present tense, so you are not experiencing a postlude of observed allure; you are seeing and experiencing what he's seeing and experiencing in that moment. The vast majority of those moments are timeless. Perhaps they can be tied to the time of year/season, but rarely are they tied to a particular date or year. So when there are a few instances of specificity (200-mile tornado on 11 December 2021 and the Arctic bomb cyclone of Christmas 2022), the poems are immensely compelling. The succinctness of the description and the poem are so strong. The limited nature of a haiku makes one wish that the poet would break the structure to expound on that moment's experience.

While the fantastical imagery is the undeniable star of Visible Magic, the structure should also be recognized. Instead of employing his own method of free-flowing poetry, Williams chooses to follow an established and potentially rigorous limitation. There's a freedom of thought and appreciation in this poetry collection, despite of -- or paradoxically by embracing? -- the strict adherence to a 17-syllable structure. It's refreshing to see a disciplined, intentional approach to a format, and for the end result/work to not have any seeming limitations.

Whether you're looking for an engaging binge of vignettes or an occasional glimpse into a pastoral setting, Visible Magic will be a welcome sight. Charles Dowling Williams offers a collection that is singularly personal and specifically located, yet offers a general and widespread appeal. Maybe that's where the second part of the title originates? "Magic" is a more succinct descriptor for a book with such inherent variety as well as a paradoxical quality of being intensely specific AND broadly enjoyable.