Combining the personal with the political in his fifth collection, Martin Espada celebrates the bread of the imagination, the bread of the table, and the bread of justice. The heart of the collection is a series of autobiographical poems recalling family, school, neighborhood, and work experiences-from bouncer to tenant lawyer. There are moments of revelation and political transcendence here, which culminate in an elegy for the Puerto Rican poet Clemente Soto Velez, imprisoned for his advocacy of independence for Puerto Rico.
Combining the personal with the political in his fifth collection, Martin Espada celebrates the bread of the imagination, the bread of the table, and ...
Alabanza is a twenty-year collection charting the emergence of Martin Espada as the preeminent Latino lyric voice of his generation. "Alabanza" means "praise" in Spanish, and Espada praises the people Whitman called "them the others are down upon": the African slaves who brought their music to Puerto Rico; a prison inmate provoking brawls so he could write poetry in solitary confinement; a janitor and his solitary strike; Espada's own father, who was jailed in Mississippi for refusing to go to the back of the bus. The poet bears witness to death and rebirth at the ruins of a...
Alabanza is a twenty-year collection charting the emergence of Martin Espada as the preeminent Latino lyric voice of his generation. "Ala...
from "The Trouble Ball On my father's island, there were hurricanes and tuberculosis, dissidents in jail and baseball. The loudspeakers boomed: Satchel Paige pitching for the Brujo of Guayama. From the Negro Leagues he brought the gifts of Baltasar the King from a bench on the plaza he told the secrets of a thousand pitches: The Trouble Ball The Triple Curve, The Bat Dodger, The Midnight Creeper, The Slow Gin Fizz The Thoughtful Stuff. Pancho Coimbre hit rainmakers for the Leones of Ponce Satchel sat the outfielders in the grass to play poker, windmilled three pitche to the plate, and...
from "The Trouble Ball On my father's island, there were hurricanes and tuberculosis, dissidents in jail and baseball. The loudspeakers boomed: Sa...
This chapbook collection offers new poems from the prolific career of a community leader, activist, and healer. Luis J. Rodriguez s work asks profound questions of us as readers and fellow humans, such as, "If society cooperates, can we nurture the full / and healthy development of everyone?" In his introductory remarks, Martin Espada describes the poet as a man engaged in people and places: "Luis Rodriguez is a poet of many tongues, befitting a city of many tongues. He speaks English, Spanish, Hip Hop, the Blues, and cool jazz. He speaks in mad solos. He speaks...
Foreword by Martin Espada
This chapbook collection offers new poems from the prolific career of a community leader, activist, and healer. Luis J....
