A review by steelwagstaff
The Poetry of Pablo Neruda by Pablo Neruda

5.0

The collected work of a titan. In my admittedly limited view, Neruda is the Americas' greatest 20th century poet. Formally skilled and wildly prolific, Neruda manages to infuse his verse with a lilting musicality, startling freshness, a piercing eye, and an abundance of vitality that enlivens and moves even when read in translation. His work is uneven, with some really shoddy political poetry, but his odes are stellar. Neruda is a giant and worth attention even from those who don't love poetry. Plus, a line from one of his poems gets paraphrased in a live version of Greg Brown's Canned Goods (Cierto Cansacio--a stellar poem), so that's a good thing.