The poetry of Pablo Neruda

The great Chilean poet Neruda, who received the Nobel Prize in 1971, two years before his death at age 69, acknowledged the twofold path of his poetry when he wrote, I have a pact of love with beauty: / I have a pact of blood with my people. The earth's glory was the portal to truth for Neruda, and his nature poems are as ravishing in the splendor of their brilliant metaphors and the eroticism of their luscious detail as his renowned love poems. The poet's deep compassion for humankind, ardor for history, and attention to politics also inspired him to write incisively of conquistadors and tyrants, war and corporate imperialism. Passionate and prolific, Neruda himself was a force of nature, filling 35 books with poetry remarkable for its simplicity, honesty, and conviction. Critic Ilan Stavans has created the first comprehensive English-language survey of Neruda's legendary oeuvre, judiciously selecting and expertly discussing 600 poems to create a genuinely invaluable and deeply pleasurable volume. Major works are presented in the original Spanish in this literary landmark, and the adept translators include such outstanding poets as Martin Espada, Jane Hirshfield, W. S. Merwin, and Mark Strand. --Donna Seaman Copyright 2003 Booklist

It took 36 translators to capture Neruda's greatness, evidenced by the 600 chronologically arranged poems given here. It's hardly complete-the protean Neruda produced a whopping 35 books-but editor Stavans has gone far in giving us the best view possible of the Nobel prize winner. (LJ 6/1/03) (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.