Red Hot Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States [Hardcover]

Lori Marie Carlson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 10, 2005

i think in spanish
i write in english

i want to go back to puerto rico,
but i wonder if my kink could live
in ponce, mayagüez and carolina

tengo las venas aculturadas
escribo en spanglish
abraham in español

--from "My Graduation Speech," by Tato Laviera

A new collection of bilingual poems from the bestselling editor of Cool Salsa

Ten years after the publication of the acclaimed Cool Salsa, editor Lori Marie Carlson has brought together a stunning variety of Latino poets for a long-awaited follow-up. Established and familiar names are joined by many new young voices, and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Oscar Hijuelos has written the Introduction.

The poets collected here illuminate the difficulty of straddling cultures, languages, and identities. They celebrate food, family, love, and triumph. In English, Spanish, and poetic jumbles of both, they tell us who they are, where they are, and what their hopes are for the future.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 8 Up–As she did in Cool Salsa (Holt, 1994), Carlson assembles another impressive forum of poetic voices. In Spanish and English, the poets speak eloquently of themselves, how and where they live, their families, and their dreams for the future. Many of them are quite well known and a number were included in the earlier book: Gary Soto, Gina Valdés, Martín Espada, and Luis J. Rodríguez, among others. In this volume, Carlson has added a few poems by students in the New York City public school system: they, too, are excellent and thought-provoking. Ivette Álvarez, for example, issues a passionate plea in Invisible Boundaries to go beyond the stereotypes that/lock us down and judge us. Other poems will delight readers with their delicate play of language, as in José Antonio Burciaga's Bilingual Love Poem/Poema de amor bilingüe, or in Tato Laviera's My Graduation Speech, which conveys a sardonic frustration through its comic mix of languages. By turns humorous and poignant, nostalgic and immediate, these poems represent a diversity of experiences, underpinned by emotions that anyone can recognize. Once again, Oscar Hijuelos's personable, highly readable introduction sets the tone. Carlson has crafted an accessible gem of a collection, and teen readers of all backgrounds will find echoes of their own experiences in its pages.–Marilyn Taniguchi, Beverly Hills Public Library, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 8-11. Carlson follows up Cool Salsa (1994) with another bilingual collection of poems that appear in both Spanish and English. Included are many well-known writers, such as Gary Soto and Luis J. Rodriguez, who appeared in the first volume, as well as emerging poets. Divided into loose categories--language, identity, neighborhoods, amor, family moments, "victory"--the poems often speak about the complex challenges of being bicultural: "I'm a grafted flower that didn't / take, a Mexican without being one, / an American without feeling like one," writes Raquel Valle Senties. Among the new writers are a few high-school students, and teens of all backgrounds will easily relate to the young authors' fury over stereotypes: "I'm surrounded by a society that expects nothing of me / other than to become a regular, tired housewife," writes student Ivette Alvarez. Most poems are translated by the poets themselves, and many are written in an inventive blend of languages, which English speakers will easily follow with help from the appended glossary. Powerful and immediate, these are voices students and teachers will want to share. Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); 1st edition (March 10, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805076166
• ISBN-13: 978-0805076165
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #608,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!, October 13, 2005

By 

Layla Wright (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Red Hot Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States (Hardcover)

As a latina born and raised in Mexico with a gringo father and now in the U.S. I found many of the poems to be an accurate reflection of being bicultural and the many directions it pulls you in.

I found the book (along with discussion questions and activities for classroom use) at: http://www.colorincolorado.org/inclass/books_month_oct05.php

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars STRAIGHT TO THE HEART, July 16, 2006

By 

Educator, Lifelong Learner (SF Bay Area, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Red Hot Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States (Hardcover)

There are dozens of poignant poems, each written in Spanish and English. I used these in my writing program, and even with parents on back to school night. Parents and 7th grade Latino students responded and the activity spawned a deeply thoughtful dialogue. Highly recommended.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Red hot choice., January 13, 2008

By 

Dr. Joan E. Aitken "author of Interpersonal C... (Kansas City, MO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Red Hot Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States (Hardcover)

Poetry. Young elementary through teens. No illustrations.

Latino writers tell who they are and what they dream through poems written in English and Spanish.