Introduction by Colin Channer Goose Lane Editions New Brunswick, Canada 1998 Reggae is the most influential popular art form in the Caribbean, and in "Wheel and Come Again'', it becomes obvious that it's also a major influence in the realm of literature.

The spirituality and revolutionary fervour that is also part of reggae is evident in these poems. In `Ode to Brother Joe', Anthony MacNeill paints this portrait of a jailed Rastafarian: "Who'll save Brother Joe? Hail/Selassie is far away/and couldn't care less,/and the promised ship/is a million light years/from Freeport.'' The book includes works by Canadian poets such as Olive Senior and Afua Cooper; UK poets including Linton Kwesi Johnson and Jean Binta Breeze; US writers Fred d'Aguiar and Rohan Preson; and Caribbean poets such as Kamau Braithwaite and Lorna Goodison.

"Wheel and Come Again'' is a phrase taken from reggae music -- it's the bandleader's call to let the other musicians and the audience know that a lyric or refrain should be repeated.

This book should spark many readers to `wheel and come again' as they read and re-read the poems in this powerful anthology.

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