Ceremonial Songs
By Chilean Nobel Laureate Pablo NerudaTranslated by Maria Jacketti
ISBN: 0-935480-80-3
Price: $14.00
Pages: 144
This collection by Chilean Nobel Laureate Pablo Neruda is a shining jewel. These thematically diverse poems celebrate Neruda's ability to explore landscapes of the heart and mind through the canto or sacred song. These poems were first published some thirty-five years ago and their universal message remains timeless.
Born in Parral, Chile, Pablo Neruda (1904-1973) was raised in the log cabins of Chilean frontier towns which left an indelible mark on his imagination and would reveal itself later in his poetry. Neruda's writing matured as he did: As his work developed from naturalistic themes to political ones, the Chilean government perceived him as a threat and he went into exile. He traveled the world and eventually landed in Italy for a brief time: the setting for the Oscar-winning film, The Postman (Il Postino).
In 1952, Neruda returned home with the blessing of a new regime which appointed him ambassador to France. He won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1971, and is now widely regarded as the greatest Latin American poet of the twentieth century.
"There are many extant English translations of Chilean
Nobel Laureate Neruda's poetry, but none contain these
resplendent sacred songs. Written more than three decades
ago...these long, operatic, and exalted poems celebrate the
great mysteries of life. These poems are bold, romantic, and
circular, embracing all the colors of the spiritual
rainbow...Neruda sees the universe when he closes his eyes,
and his poems make existence that much sweeter."
--Booklist
"Neruda's stature is such that any appearance of his poetry
in translation deserves to be available to all who love Latin
American poetry."
--Library Journal