Poetry Like Bread: Poets of the Political Imagination from Curbstone Press

By Curbstone Press

Book Overview

Poetry Like Bread contains poems by nearly forty poets published by the Curbstone Press during the last twenty years. These poets are probably unlike any you have studied. Their engagement with everyday political and economic realities is as direct as a newspaper, their language as familiar as conversation. Their motto, taken from Roque Dalton for the title of the collection, is that "poetry, like bread, is for everyone."

These poems were not written to be studied. They were meant to be read. Or better yet, heard. Whole or in part. Alone or among friends and strangers. Reading and hearing them, you must respond and react. Some may inspire you, knock the wind out of you--make you indignant, sad, joyous, ashamed. Whether you drop this book, seek out others, join a social action group, write letters to your elected representatives, or write poems of your own, your reaction to the poems will be as political as the poems themselves.

Some of the subjects of these poems may be unfamiliar to you, or very familiar to you. Many relate stories from war-torn Central and South America, where U. S. policy has had a huge impact on people's lives. The rest are the voices of the voiceless here in the U.S: Latinos and African Americans, Vietnam veterans and Vietnamese, prison inmates, blue collar workers, migrant workers, women, the homeless. It's the poet's job to open up and validate these worlds to us. Our job, once roused, is to learn. To learn and to act.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1880684748
• ISBN13: 9781880684740
• Release Date: September 2000
• Publisher: Curbstone Press
• Length: 332 Pages
• Weight: 1.04 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Incredible, profound, political poems!

Ever since I read City of Coughing and Dead Radiators, I wanted to read more poetry by Martin Espada. Poetry Like Bread isn't a collection of his poetry though. This is a collection of Curbstone Press poets -- most of which have written about politics and other controversial issues since the seventies -- from various parts of the Americas. The poems are intense, thought provoking, profound and beautiful. I have never read poetry like this. Some messages were as clear as day, others required reading between the lines, but they were all incredible. My favorites are "The Rivers," by Claribel Alegria; "The Torturer's Apprentice," by Doug Anderson; "Poverty," by Noemi Ayala; and "The Voices of the Dead," by Julia de Burgos. I am glad I was able to read the Spanish version of some of the poems. Sometimes words and meanings get lost in translation -- although the translator did a wonderful job writing some of the poems in English. I recommend this gem most highly if you are a fellow poetry enthusiast.

REVIEW QUOTES

Since 1975, Curbstone Press has published works by a most unique group of writers: political activists, revolutionaries, guerrilla combatants, as well as ordinary working people, from the U.S., Latin America, and throughout the world. What all share is an affinity for that place "where art and politics intersect." Unique among poetry anthologies, POETRY LIKE BREAD contains works by poets whose imaginations are political. These are poets whose works are united in a desire for a world where human needs are met and justice is pursued."POETRY LIKE BREAD is an engrossing, readable, and highly passionate poetry anthology...It gives us poetry that sustains, that nourishes, and that is available to all." --Poetry Flash"These works demonstrate with eloquence that the task of poetry-and all literature-is to challenge us, to illuminate our world and our lives, to force us to examine that which we take for granted and to act in solidarity for something new, to 'give name to the nameless so it can be thought.'" --The Nation"...engrossing, readable, and highly passionate poetry." --Bloomsbury Review