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Canto General, 50th Anniversary Edition (Latin American Literature and Culture, 7)

Pablo Neruda

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

A Masterpiece of Latin American Literature 5 out of 5 stars.
17 of 18 people found this review helpful.

If you must read only one book from the Modern Latin American Literature (and this certainly would be a great mistake, if not a crime), then it should be this one. Canto General is a single poem, and yet it is a collection of poems. It is a historical epic, a social analysis, a political pamphlet, and a love sonnet. It is a song of Love and a song of Revolt, a personal song as well as a universal one; a song which whispers tenderly in your ear, and a song that screams against injustice with a loud forceful voice. It is Pablo Neruda's song and it is Chile's song, but it is truly America's song, North and South.

Written in Neruda's lyrical and mellifluous style, Canto General speaks with passion, lucidity, and even premonition of the heavy burden of social injustice and the brutality of tyrannical rule. But it also speaks with overflowing sensuality of love (for women, for the people, for his country). It would be unconscionable not to absorb and understand this book in its social and historical context, yet it would be a great mistake to view it uniquely as a political work of expression.

Read it to understand the Americas. Read it to revel in the beauty of its language. Read it to feel proud and to feel ashamed, to laugh and to cry. Read it in English (good), in Spanish (much better), or even in French (why not?)

I first read Canto General in French at the age of 15. I may since have forgotten some of the words in this book, but its impact and its spirit will probably remain with me for the rest of my life....

Editorial Review:

Fiftieth Anniversary Edition

Neruda was a kind of King Midas. Everything he touched turned to poetry, says Gabriel Garca Mrquez, who also considers the Chilean Nobel laureate "the greatest poet of the twentieth century, in any language." [The Fragrance of Guava, 1983]. The Canto General, thought by many of Neruda's most prominent critics to be the poet's masterpiece, is the stunning epic of an entire continent and its people. The Canto speaks of the destiny of Latin American peoples and the life of the poet himself. Without question, this is one of the most important and powerful long poems written in the modern period.

Antipoems: How to Look Better & Feel Great

Nicanor Parra

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 7 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The first major collection in almost twenty years of new work by one of Latin America's greatest poets.

"Real seriousness," Nicanor Parra, the antipoet of Chile, has said, rests in "the comic." And read in that light, this newest collection of his work is very serious indeed. It is an abundant offering of his signature mocking humor, subverting received conventions and pretensions in both poetry and everyday life, public and private, ingeniously and wittily rendered into English in an antitranslation (the word is Parra's) by Liz Werner.

Of the fifty-eight pieces in Antipoems, the first twenty-three are taken from Parra's 1985 collection, Hojas de Parra ("Vine Leaves" or "Leaves of Parra"), two others appeared in his Páginas en Blanco ("Blank Pages," 2001), while the rest come straight out of his notebooks and have never been published before, either in Spanish or English. The book itself is divided into two sections, "Antipoems" (im)proper and a selection of Parra's most recent incarnation of the antipoem, the hand-drawn images of his "Visual Artefactos."

Abriendo Puertas: Antologia De Literatura En Espanol, Tomo 1 (Spanish Edition)

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

The Book for the Exam 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

This book along with "Tomo I" are without a doubt the AP Spanish Lit Exam. I had both books during the last school year and 4 of the featured stories in the books appeared on the MC section and another 4 appeared on the free response section. Bottom line if you are looking to take AP Spanish Lit exam this is the book for you. In addition it is a great read for anyone who is wants to start reading Spanish literature. The books feature a variation of authors from all of Mexico, South and Central America, and Spain. Stories come with a brief biography of the author and provide some background of the writers. In addition colloquial phrases and complex words are defined in the same page they are printed and are marked with numbers making them easy to find in the story and list. In short I really liked this book and recommend it to anyone taking the AP Lit exam or interested in Spanish literature.
-Alex

amazing stories in spanish! 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

The poems, excerpts, and short stories in this book are extremely enjoyable. Many of the stories in this book I have also read in English, but it is always a pleasure to read them in their original language. Recommended for AP or advanced Spanish classes.

Italian Intermezzo (Menus and Music) (O'Connor, Sharon, Menus and Music, V. 15.)

Sharon O'Connor

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Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

The best Italian dinners are made at home. This title puts a cookbook with recipes from a variety of chefs together with a music CD of songs that capture the soul of Italy, masterpiece paintings from the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries, poetry, and colourful food photography. The author travelled throughout Italy and the United States to visit 21 chefs. She has formatted 120 of their recipes for the home cook, including dishes for each course of a traditional Italian meal, from antipasti to dolci, including baked ricotta cheese; pappardelle with shrimp, tomatoes, and basil; and espresso gelato. On the accompanying CD, the Pizzarelli-Peplowski Sextet creates the sound of Italy everyone knows, from Neopolitan songs and opera to pop songs and music from the movies. Recipes come from 21 restaurants in Italy and North America including: Certosa di Maggiano, Siena; Don Alfonso, Sant' Agata; Hotel Cipriani, Venice; Villa San Michele, Florence; Acqerello, San Francisco; San Domenico, New York; Spiaggia, Chicago; and Valentino, Los Angeles. The music includes: "Ah! Maria"; "Mattinata"; "Non Dimenticar"; Santa Lucia"; "O Sole Mio"; and "Torna a Surriento".

Neruda and Vallejo: Selected Poems

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Neruda and Vallejo-Selected Poems - Robert Bly, et al editor 5 out of 5 stars.
10 of 11 people found this review helpful.

I recently finished reading this powerful collection of works, and enjoyed it immensely. Bly does a marvellous job of capturing the mood and power of these poets, and the biographical pieces were interesting and to the point.

This collection is also bilingual, which is a great plus even if you only listen for the sound of the poetic line.

I would highly recommend it for those who have not experienced either of these fine poets. It left me hungry for more of their work.

sublime 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

I found this collection very satisfying on several levels. First the translations are excellent, successfully capturing both concrete and abstract elements of both poets. Second, the careful selection by Mr. Bly of poems wonderfully illustrates the best elements of each poet, the abstract genius of Neruda and the passion of Vallejo. Third; this collection is bilingual and even if one does not speak spanish, reading and listening to the poems in the native language allows one to appreciate the rhyme schemes, tempos, alliteration etc.

Editorial Review:

"Chilean Pablo Neruda is Latin America's greatest poet and one of the finest ever to have written in the Spanish language. The Peruvian poet César Vallejo, part Indian and born in a mining village, ranks not far below Neruda. Robert Bly is one of America's foremost poets, and a translator of uncommon brilliance. The combination makes for a priceless volume." -Long Beach Press Telegram

Canto General (Spanish Edition)

Pablo Neruda

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Epic poetic narrative 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

Neruda's Canto General is a poetic retelling of the history of South and Central America from the late pre-Columbian era to the middle of the twentieth century. The book is set up like a novel, with chapters and subheadings, a straight-line narration, and a cast of characters. Neruda's communist ideology is visible throughout the work and is a major theme. Canto General leaves the reader with an interesting impression of American history seen through the eyes of the impoversihed people of South America, as well as an idea of how third-world communists perceive reality. This is truly an excellent work, and should be read by everyone.

Truly the American Bible. 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This is one of Neruda's greatest books. It is a jorney through the history of the American Continent, from its creation, to its conquest until the present day. Most readers will know it from its chapter 'Hights of Machu Picchu' but it is certainly more than that.

It is a review of 500 hundred years of history, of war, of love, of betray. Obviously the book is a reflection of Neruda's left wing inclination, but that only adds to the book.

In Chile and other parts of Latin America this book is called "The American Bible" and it truly is. Along with Residencia en la Tierra, it is probably Neruda's finest. And is probably the book in which Neruda became what he though his role as a poet ought to be "a voice for all who had no voice".

Modern Spanish Prose: With a Selection of Poetry (7th Edition)

Gustave W. Andrian

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Editorial Review:

For use in upper-level courses in Spanish Conversation and Composition, Spanish Conversation, and Intermediate Spanish. This collection of prose works and poetry by famous Hispanic authors features intellectually mature and appealing selections whose brevity and simplicity of style do not require adaptation, simplification, or abridgment. The text is designed to be used after the acquisition of basic grammar and vocabulary; these readings enhance language learning at any level.

Federico Garcia Lorca: A Life

Ian Gibson

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Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Gibson tells you about Lorca and all that surrounded him. 5 out of 5 stars.
29 of 31 people found this review helpful.

Lorca's life, and fate, other than some superficial items, were for the most part hidden from public awareness for many decades. He was in many ways a victim, but mostly from politicians, because they killed him.

The excesses of the Reds were countered by the excesses of the Blues (phalangists, rightists, fascists) in a dictatorship that outdid the murders of all predecessors. Politicians sometimes destroy something in order to "save" it. His threat was his speech, and 1998, the year of his centennial, the centennial of Spain's great gift to us for producing so many super-writers ("the generation of 98"), was the year in which we were reminded that the struggle against oppression never ends.

Gibson tells us the story of Lorca but not only about him. If he mentions Granada, Andalucia, the Gypsies, the Moors, Falla, the Spanish Civil War, etc, he will ALSO tell you about that! In this book you will grasp the meaning of surrealism, its evolution, Lorca's surrealism, and particularly the surrealism of Dali and Buñuel.

This book is a must for the literary avid, the poetry fan, the history bum, the political student, and importantly, for those of us that will benefit from learning that what happened in Spain may also happen in our own countries.

Editorial Review:

Back in print to coincide with the release of the upcoming motion picture Death in Granada on the life of Lorca, this "monumental biography" (New York Times) goes to the heart of his explosive genius. When, at the age of 38, Federico Garcia Lorca was executed by anti-republican rebels during the Spanish Civil War, he was already one of the world's most celebrated poets and playwrights.

The Upside Down Boy/El nino de cabeza (Spanish Edition)

Juan Felipe Herrera

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

The Upside Down Boy 4 out of 5 stars.
13 of 14 people found this review helpful.

This multi-cultural storybook celebrates diversity through both the telling of the story and the inclusion of two languages: English and Spanish. Juanito is the son of migrant workers from Mexico. Neither of his parents had the opportunity to complete school, but realize the importance of education. When Juanito reaches school age, his parents settle down so that he may regularly attend. At first the new schedules feel strange to Juanito and he is often doing the wrong thing during designated times. However, once he adjusts, he discovers his beautiful singing voice, artistic talent, and receives high marks for a poem he wrote. He and his parents are proud of the success Juanito finds in school despite the challenge of adapting to an unfamiliar language and culture. The vibrant illustrations promote the positive feeling towords multiculturalism portrayed in this picture storybook.

Editorial Review:

Fresh from the country, Juanito is bewildered by his new school. Everything he does feels upside down: he eats lunch when it's recess and goes out to play when it's time for lunch, and his tongue feels like a rock when he tries to speak English. But a sensitive teacher and his loving family help Juanito find his voice through poetry, art, and music. Juan Felipe Herrera's playful language and the magical illustrations of Elizabeth Gómez capture the universal experience of entering a new school and feeling lost in a world that seems upside down — at first.

Versos Sencillos: Simple Verses (Recovering the Us Hispanic Literary Heritage)

Jose Marti, Manuel A. Tellechea

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

An important achievement in Cuban literature 4 out of 5 stars.
12 of 13 people found this review helpful.

"Simple Verses" is a collection of poems by Jose Marti (1853-1895), the 19th century Cuban poet and revolutionary who spent many years in exile in the United States. This is a bilingual edition, with the Spanish originals and English versions on facing pages. The translation into English is by Manuel A. Tellechea. Tellechea also contributes an excellent introduction which includes fascinating biographical information about Marti. The poems are untitled; each is assigned a Roman numeral.

Marti writes about romance, nature, family, and other subjects. Many of his poems are political and revolutionary in nature: he condemns Spanish colonial violence in Cuba, expresses his anti-slavery position, and identifies with the oppressed: "With the earth's poor everywhere, / I shall cast my lot" (poem III). In his marriage of poetry with politics and social justice, Marti foreshadows many of Latin America's 20th century poets: Gioconda Belli of Nicaragua, Roberto Sosa of Honduras, Juan Gelman of Argentina, and others, especially especially Pablo Neruda of Chile.

Many of Marti's poems appear to be autobiographical in nature. Some of his poems are dark and macabre in tone, others prophetic and even ecstatic. He sometimes reflects on his own poetic work: "My verse is like a dagger / At whose hilt a flower grows" (poem V). His best work, as interpreted by Tellechea, has a compelling freshness and beauty.

I only found one aspect of the book troublesome. Most of Marti's poems are written in four line stanzas, and in each poem he generally sticks to a constant rhyme scheme from stanza to stanza: ABBA or ABAB. But in his English versions, Tellechea sometimes mixes up the ABBA and ABAB schemes within poems, without any logical pattern and contradictory to Marti's originals; I found these switches very distracting.

Still, this is an excellent volume by a significant figure in Latin American literary history. And the rhyme scheme issue aside, I commend and thank Tellechea for making these "Simple Verses" available in English.

Editorial Review:

bilingual, 1st full translation (Manuel Tellechea)