Love, Spain and Poetry

My Review of A Salute to Spanish Poetry: 100 Masterpieces from Spain and Latin America:

I have to say, I know nothing of translating the Spanish language or the art of Spanish poetry, so I cannot comment on any technical aspects of the book, A Salute to Spanish Poetry: 100 Masterpieces from Spain and Latin America. However, I do think the creator of the book, John Howard Reid, did an excellent job; the Latin flavour comes through the translation and you can almost feel the Spanish sun as you read the words.

I loved reading the book; the poems within the pages are truly beautiful. A Salute to Spanish Poetry contains the works of the various poets of Spain and the other countries such as Mexico, Chile and Peru. I was not familiar with any of these poets before reading the book -being more inclined to read poets of Britain and Ireland- but I certainly gained an admiration for their talent set on the pages.

The majority of the poems are about the various states of love: in love, out of love, unrequited love, finding love. They are wonderful and haunting, as are the verses on other subjects of country, death and life. Romantic idealism abounds in the words, whether the poems reflect passion, Spain or existence.

Like all books of poetry, there were some verses I liked better than others, but the book as a whole is very evocative and almost ethereal. There is also a nice biographical index included with a short history of each of the poets. A Salute to Spanish Poetry is an excellent book of poetry and I recommend it.