ALEX HALL is disgusted by the misuse of ‘emotional narratives’ to justify uninformed geo-political prejudice
Latest editorial
A poetic pilgrimage through Latin America
LEO BOIX talks to Richard Gwyn about Latin American poetry, translation and enduring literary friendships
(L) Clockwise from top L: Chilean poets Raul Zurita and Veronica Zondek; Mexican poet Daniel Samoilovich and Colombian poet Piedad Bonnett; (R) welsh poet and translator Richard Gwyn
SUE TURNER welcomes a thoughtful, engaging book that lays bare the economic realities of global waste management
JOHN GREEN welcomes an insider account of the achievements and failures of the transition to democracy in Portugal
SIMON PARSONS applauds an imaginative and absorbing updating of Strindberg’s classic
PETER MASON is enthralled by an assembly of objects, ancient and modern, that have lain in the mud of London’s river
MICK McSHANE rubs shoulders with Mod legend Steve Craddock and joins in with the joyous Glasgow choir
DENNIS BROE sifts out the ideological bias of the newest TV series offerings, and picks out what to see, and what to avoid
“WHEN I was 15, I read all of Che Guevara’s works,” says Richard Gwyn. “So, when I went to university, I was particularly interested in the anthropology of certain Latin American communities… There was a mix of different influences. Discovering Gabriel Garcia Marquez, of course, and Jorge Luis Borges… These things all contributed to a kind of fascination, which was slightly dreamy, based on ideas I didn't fully comprehend.”
That’s how Gwyn began his interest in Latin America as a student, leading him many years later to travel to that vast region in search of poets for a landmark anthology.
A first visit to the International Poetry Festival in Granada, Nicaragua, convinced him of the need to produce an anthology of recent poetry from Latin America, which eventually became The Other Tiger (Seren, 2016).
More from this author
While the group known as the Colourists certainly reinvigorated Scottish painting, a new show is a welcome chance to reassess them, writes ANGUS REID
ANGUS REID recommends an exquisite drama about the disturbing impact of the one child policy in contemporary China
The phrase “cruel to be kind” comes from Hamlet, but Shakespeare’s Prince didn’t go in for kidnap, explosive punches, and cigarette deprivation. Tam is different.
ANGUS REID deconstructs a popular contemporary novel aimed at a ‘queer’ young adult readership
