One thing we can count on with The Hummingbird Review: Every issue will be different, and delicious in its own way.

Publisher Charles Redner has always been big on combining four different types of pieces - poetry, essay, interviews and song lyrics. Once again, The Hummingbird Review has delivered on this account, adding in guest editor Thea Iberall's esteemed background in writing contextual poetry. The poems in this issue carry a different tone than past issues, but their sharpness of detail and clarity, and the variety of verse forms, is outstanding.

Some new poetic voices made their way into this issue. I especially liked "Hotel Room," by Farzana Versey, "The Cats of Leningrad" by John Gardiner, and Iberall's "The Evolutionary Record." I'm a fan of John Rouleau's work, so great to see him in print again. As for the typical Hummingbird Review poetry coup: how about this for a track record? Issue 1 - Taylor Mali. Issue 2 - Martin Espada. Issue 3 - Joy Harjo and Gary Snyder. This issue - the great Romantic era Russia poet Alexsandr Pushkin.

Then there are the essays. Brian Wilkes' piece, "The Berber Stone and the Cherokee Enigma," resonates very strongly with me, because I'm one of those that trace the ancestry of "ancient" tribes -- and it always leads to Africa or the Bering Strait. Brian is one of the most knowledgable experts on the Cherokee language and culture alive, so his essay carries added weight. Then there is the interview with Noam Chomsky. Leave it to the Hummingbird Review team -- they always pull a rabbit out of the hat and make this literary journal not only entertaining, but also culturally informative. Redner has directed the editorial toward multicultural expression from day one.