Chapbooks & Translation Meet

Two wonderful chapbooks of poetry from Spain.

One afternoon many years ago, walking around the AWP conference, I arrived at a table full of limited-edition poetry chapbooks. Sitting at the table were two tall poets—Curtis Bauer and Sebastian Matthews. Curtis is the editor and Sebastian is one of the editors, curators, and advisory board members of Q Avenue Press, along with poets Ross Gay, Elaine Sexton, and Ryan Walsh. I left that table with Poems & Poetics by Luis Muñoz, translated by Curtis Bauer. It is one of just 30 hand-bound copies.

Later, I was delighted to read another chapbook Curtis translated, Baghdad & Other Poems by Jorge Gimeno. Both these chapbooks are part of Curtis’s enduring commitment to translate the best and most exciting poets of Spain. I am thrilled to feature two poets from each chapbook, along with a Q &A with Curtis. Both chapbooks can be found with a little internet sleuthing, or a helpful university librarian.

Curtis’s full-length translation include the gorgeous Eros Is More by Juan Antonio Gonzalez-Iglesias and the novel The Home Reading Service, by Fabio Morábito (Other Press, 2021), the memoir Land of Women, by María Sánchez (Trinity University Press, 2022) and the full-length poetry collection This Could Take Some Time by Clara Muschietti (Eulalia books, 2022). Curtis is the author of three collections of poems, most recently most recently American Selfie (Barrow Street Press, 2019), available in Spanish translation as Selfi Americano (Vaso Roto Ediciones, 2022).

Inside, Baghdad and Other Poems (published by Poets at Work, 2015) is a bilingual edition. Here are two poems that caught my eye then, and that I continue to return to. The first is just six lines long—but they are memorable lines. Please consider yourself forewarned: these lines are a most unusual form of a love poem.

There are not that many poems that state: “I could hide your ashes in the refrigerator.” But there are also not that many poets who describe themselves as similar to churches and mosques. I love the poem below, especially its first line. It’s a delight to read it with the Spanish and English facing each other.

And here is a glimpse into Poems & Poetics by Luis Muñoz; I am the proud owner of one of the 30 copies in existence, pictured below.

This is a short poem by Luis Muñoz about imagining the neighbors, translated once again by Curtis Bauer, and found in that wonderful 30-copy documentary chapbook, all hand-bound:

Poet, translator, editor, and chapbook publisher—Curtis Bauer.

This is the fourth of four posts about chapbooks, to accompany an AWP panel on breaking the rules on chapbooks. Thank you to all the newsletter readers who came to say hello in Kansas City, and welcome to the new readers who want to learn more.

Today in Chicago—Reading With Peter Orner at The Chicago Loop Synagogue

If you’re in Chicago on this gorgeous day, consider coming to this special reading and conversation with Peter Orner. I am so honored and delighted to participate:

Celan Winter Salon on February 25th

On Sunday, February 25th at 12 EST, I will be hosting a special winter salon on Paul Celan with translator Pierre Joris and editor Carlie Hoffman, for paid subscribers of this newsletter. This Zoom event is one of a series of exclusive events with writers adn thinkers, and it accompanies the publication of a fascinating and unique chapbook about Celan’s most famous poem, “Deathfugue”—and the newsletter post about it.

The chapbook includes never-before-published drafts of the translation of the poem and a wonderful essay by Joris. If you would like to be part of the newsletter community and have a chance to learn more about Celan and his translations, please do join us. Monthly and annual subscriptions are available, for yourself or as a gift for a person in your life who loves literature, translation, and ideas.

Hope you enjoyed this newsletter! Thank you for your support of writing with depth.