The Wind Shifts: New Latino Poetry on Tour
National Book Tour Features Four Poets at Pilsen Reading
CHICAGO – Poetry magazine is proud to co-sponsor with the Guild Complex and Letras Latinas a poetry reading by four poets whose work is featured in the anthology The Wind Shifts: New Latino Poetry—Rosa Alcalá, Kevin A. González, Carolina Monsivais, and Lidia Torres.
What: The Wind Shifts: New Latino Poetry ON TOUR. Featuring Rosa Alcalá, Kevin A. González, Carolina Monsivais, and Lidia Torres.
When: Wednesday, May 20, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Décima Musa Restaurant and Bar, 1901 S. Loomis, Chicago
Admission is free and open to the public.
Sandra Cisneros, author of The House on Mango Street—the 2009 selection for Chicago’s citywide bookclub, One Book, One Chicago—has said of the collection, “In the hour of extremes, long live these brave wordsmiths of American letters. Hallowed be the poets when the news is diffused in the name of susto.”
Don Share, senior editor of Poetry magazine, said, “We’re very excited to collaborate with the anthology’s editor, Francisco Aragón, in celebration of this vital collection and its impressive poets.”
Rosa Alcalá’s most recent collection of poems is Undocumentary (Dos Press, 2008). She is also the author of Some Maritime Disasters (Belladonna, 2003). Her translations from Spanish are widely published, and are forthcoming in The Oxford Book of Latin American Poetry.
Kevin A. González is the author of the recently published collection Cultural Studies (Carnegie Mellon University Press, 2009). His poems and stories have appeared in various venues, including Poetry, The Progressive and McSweeney’s. His work is also featured at From the Fishouse (www.fishousepoems.org).
Carolina Monsivais’ book Somewhere Between Houston and El Paso: Testimonies of a Poet (Wings Press, 2001) received the Premio Poesía Tejana. Her work has appeared in various journals and anthologies, including U.S. Latino Literature Today (Longman, 2004).
Lidia Torres is the author of A Weakness for Boleros (Mayapple Press, 2005). Her poems have appeared in such journals as Ploughshares, Hayden’s Ferry Review, and Massachusetts Review. Her distinctions include a poetry fellowship from the New York Foundation for the Arts.
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About Poetry Magazine
Founded in Chicago by Harriet Monroe in 1912, Poetry is the oldest monthly devoted to verse in the English-speaking world. Monroe’s “Open Door” policy, set forth in Volume I of the magazine, remains the most succinct statement of Poetry’s mission: to print the best poetry written today, in whatever style, genre, or approach. The magazine established its reputation early by publishing the first important poems of T.S. Eliot, Ezra Pound, Marianne Moore, Wallace Stevens, H.D., William Carlos Williams, Carl Sandburg, and other now-classic authors. In succeeding decades it has presented—often for the first time—works by virtually every major contemporary poet.
About Letras Latinas
Letras Latinas, the literary program of the Institute for Latino Studies, seeks to enhance the visibility, appreciation and study of Latino literature both on and off the campus of the University of Notre Dame. We are particularly interested in projects that identify and support emerging Latino/a writers. Letras Latinas actively seeks collaboration with individuals and organizations in order to more effectively carry out its mission. Letras Latinas is under the direction of Francisco Aragón.
About Guild Complex
The Guild Complex, a community-based literary organization, presents and supports diverse, divergent, and emerging voices through innovative programs including performances and readings. We look at literary culture and ask—what’s missing? Proud of the traditions of literary excellence and community-based events established by Guild Books, the Guild Complex has carried on this legacy through our provocative, eclectic and stimulating programs for nearly 20 years.