Review of Selected Poems by Atilla Josef

Selected Poems by: Attila Josef
I normally am not the biggest fan of anything beyond elementary poetry. In other words, I rarely like to listen or read poetry that is beyond iambic pentameter. This text forced me to read and comprehend outside of my comfort zone as far as literature is concerned. One thing I must say I found in reading the Selected Poems was the constant reference to the author’s mother. It seemed through his writings that he had both a tremendous love and an excessive hate for his mother. In the poem, “Too Late for a Funeral” he blames his mother for her own death, stating, “I should have eaten you!” It was expressions such as these that caught my attention and forced me to look deeper into the writing. After reading that selection, it became clear to me that the poems required deeper thinking into literature itself, and to read into what the author was saying. Aside from the negative, I also found the selection, “Rising at the Dawn like Bakers” to be an interesting piece. He describes this ideal woman that he hopes to marry one day. He illustrates her qualities and elucidates that this idea of a woman is much like his own mother. He wishes to be like his father and marry her one day. In another selection entitled, “Sacriledge” he refers to a young virgin and asks for her “virgin mercy”. These writings were certainly different and intriguing. I also cant help but wonder the author’s complete intended purpose in writing. These writings were translated into English from Hungarian, and anyone who has ever spoken more than one language can tell you that passages are never exactly the same. Perhaps, some of the true meaning was lost in the translation. All in all, excellent read, I recommend it to anyone.

Review of Pembroke Magazine #40

Pembroke Magazine #40

One, if not the most interesting thing about this magazine was its “special” or its number 40 edition. The magazine contained often ignored or disregarded subjects of writing and the authors that write them. This particular edition featured Hispanic/ Latino writers. One thing I found to be quite interesting was the bi-lingual changes throughout the writing. I am not bi-lingual so the text was accommodating. There will be a passage in English, followed by the same passage translated into Spanish, and vice-versa. I was also astounded to find so many countries represented throughout the writing. Some of the countries mentioned throughout the text were Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Spain and the United States. The diversity was not limited to merely countries, the range of ideas of the writing itself ranged from immigration to romance. Throughout reading some of the passages and poems I came across a story written by Jose Latour entitled, Havanightmare located on page 18. The title alone caught my attention and as I read the story intrigued me. It told the story of a woman named Megan who went on a cruise around the islands of Central America. She was kidnapped by a man and held hostage. What she later learns is that the man holding her is essentially doing so beyond his own will. After an insightful look into his own troubled past, he informs his captive that by kidnapping her is the only way to save his wife. It is a story that ends with quite a twist that was not expected. It was just one among many poems throughout the text, but it was a great read that I suggest to anyone whether bilingual or not.