Little Stones at My Window: Selected Poems of Mario Benedetti, Vol. 1 FROM THE PUBLISHER
This bilingual collection of Mario Benedetti's poems covers a fifty-year span, with poems that range in theme from the pain of exile to the joys of love to the horrors of political repression. Benedetti also frequently conveys with Kafkaesque irony the impact of bureaucracy on the lives of ordinary citizens. Mario Benedetti is recognized throughout the Spanish-speaking world as a major voice in Latin American poetry. He has received numerous awards and has been the recipient of honorary degrees from universities in Spain and Latin America. He was recently recognized with the Premio Reina Sofia for Latin American poetry. His poems are characterized by clarity of thought and originality of language and imagery, and thus are readily accessible to "the common reader". Charles Hatfield's perceptive introduction provides valuable insights into the man and his poetry.
FROM THE CRITICS
Criticas - Gianna M. Martella, Western Oregon Univ., Monmouth Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
Uruguay's best-known poet, Benedetti is also famous for his short stories, political essays, and novels, as well as his frequent contributions to the Uruguayan journal Marcha and Spain's El Pais. The novels La tregua (Truce, Alfa, 1960) and Gracias por el fuego (Thanks for the Fire, Alfa, 1965) stand out among his work. This bilingual collection of poems, which spans almost 50 years of Benedetti's writing, provides a clear picture of his development as a poet, showing the range of his poetic voice. An extensive introduction by translator Hatfield features biographical material and historical background for the period in which Benedetti wrote (1945-2003), all invaluable for understanding his work. Recurrent themes in the selected poems include love, the nostalgia of exile (Benedetti lived in exile for several years and saw his writing banned from his country), the paradoxical and enigmatic nature of existence, and the need to give a voice to the oppressed. Overall, his writing is colloquial and accessible and, with few exceptions, lacks the hermetism of most contemporary Spanish-language poetry. This is the first bilingual anthology of Benedetti's poetry published in the United States, and it gives readers a clear idea of his social concerns and literary strengths. Recommended for public and academic libraries.
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