Shaking Off the Dark (Clasicos Chicanos) [Paperback]

Tino Villanueva (Author)

Book Description

Series: Clasicos Chicanos | Publication Date: January 1, 1998

Poetry/Spanish (untranslated), English and Spanglish. First published in 1984 by Arte Publico, Shaking Off the Dark has become one of the classics of Chicano literature. This new, corrected edition features poems not included in the first edition, as well as an introduction and bibilography. These poems are thoughtful, angry, perceptive, and address such topics as art, time, love, oppression, history, and language itself. "Distraught,/mad-eyed from told formulas/bound to rule my easy ways,/I look, I see,/but fail once more to know." In his "failure" to know, however, Villanueva provides us a gorgeous window onto the worlds he sees so sharply. "So arise, Chicano," he extorts, "arise from the shadow of Nothingness;/arise from that neverending Nada of servitude./The problem is we live by other people's words" (from "Speak Up, Chicano, Speak Up"). Villanueva does speak up, creating poems to counter "other people's words." A recipient of the American Book Award, Villanueva lives in Boston and teaches at Boston University.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, Spanish

Product Details

• Paperback: 101 pages
• Publisher: Bilingual Review Pr; 2nd edition (January 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0927534738
• ISBN-13: 978-0927534734
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,864,387 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Affirmation of Life, July 21, 2007

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SMH (Tuckahoe, NY USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Shaking Off the Dark (Clasicos Chicanos) (Paperback)

"Shaking Off the Dark" is a series of luminous poems that takes the reader through dark despair to an affirmation of life. For those of us who are bilingual and bicultural, Villanueva reflects the world we live in and the world in which we strive to build an identity that is whole. The poems are accessible, yet they are complex because they deal with the wounds of social discrimation that often victimize us. Villanueva invites us to cast off this victimization and to embrace our lives.

If you don't speak Spanish no matter, for the majority of the poems are in English. These poems will resonate with anyone who appreciates beauty and knows when a poet speaks from the heart.

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful! Simply Wonderful!, July 24, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Shaking Off the Dark (Clasicos Chicanos) (Paperback)

I bought this book to do a paper for a class. I had no idea that I was buying what would become one of my favorite poetry books, or that this name given to me by a teacher would become one of my favorite poets. I would suggest this collection to any poetry lover. The poems in this book range from humorous to happy to angry to sad. There is something for every feeling.