The Collected Poems of Octavio Paz 1957–1987

A great port and important figure in Mexican culture. Well worth reading.

I am ashamed to admit that it was the most recent work by Mererid Hopwood that made me turn for the first time, to the work of this wonderful poet and Nobel Prize winner. One literary figure described his work as entering the space between language and silence.It did/does more than that for me ,even when read in translation.Paz has/had in spades ,the power to convey meanings full of imagery ,ideas and a palate of emotions.The silence in my description is one of awe.

Wonderful. And how encouraging to see his anti-communist poems. A bold and original spirit.

How do I measure the value of a book? For someone like me that is like asking how do you measure the value of Love! First of all I have been a huge fan of Spanish Language poets, especially Neruda, Vallejo and Lorca for years, and cannot believe that I have missed Paz along the way. The name was familiar but had not read his work. Can't even recall now how I came across him recently, read a few things I found online and it struck a chord with me immediately. And when I began to research his books this one stood out. In short, it is far better than I expected. The work of Paz resonates so deeply with me and I suppose as a writer one of the ways I do "measure" the value of a book is when it inspires me to write, and this book has given me much inspiration. I always get bilingual editions- I read Spanish, French and Italian now to a lesser degree, which is a bit strange because I am Italian but only started to learn to language a couple of years ago. I lived in Mexico for a year and spoke it as often as I could, but I haven't done so in many years so I do not speak it very well anymore, but read it fairly well, the same with French. There are several French writers, poets in particular, that equally move me, in one way or another, and most are from the early 20th Century, although I have come across a couple who are still writing today. But I suppose with "Spanish" poets, wherever they are from, I am moved in a much different way. It comes down to levels of passion in the art that Lorca called "duende". I can't put this tome down. In a short time, Paz has become one of my favorite poets. And this book has become a cherished addition to my library. I have been writing poetry for about 45 years; I grew up with the Beats, and those poets who were their influences and poets who they influenced of my generation. Over the years I have been drawn more to French and Spanish writers mostly of the early 20th century, although Paz wrote a bit later. I am intrigued with Paz's style and imagery. Like Lorca he can 'astonish' with just a few lines of verse. The way in which he strings words, phrases together is magical. His passion hit me in such a deep place. I found him in a time of my life when I needed to. This has usually been the case. I have published two novels and a collection of selected poetry that spans 40+ years of my life. I believe that great writers are born, most of the real greats seem like they have existed on some other plane. And I know how important great writers have been to me as both a read and a writer. Several of my favorite Spanish language writers truly capture the essence and nuance of "darkness and light", and Paz is one of the best. It is hard for me to compare, for example, to Neruda or Lorca because I have been reading them for so long, but it is very rare for any poet to totally engage me so quickly. This collection is excellent, the translations are very good, an art in itself. I highly recommend this book to any one who already knows of Paz, and to anyone that appreciates truly great writing.

Producto que me fascina. Espero poder comprarlo de nuevo muy pronto como regalo en esa ocasión. Me llegó muy pronto. Quedé muy satisfecho.

I bought this used and it is in the condition described by seller, it was promptly shipped and well packaged. The book is great , but I realize that is subjective. If you like this you will probably like Mr Paz's poems. Counterparts In my body you search the mountain for the sun buried in its forest. In your body I search for the boat adrift in the middle of the night

Paz is wonderful. Hablo un poquitito de español. So I depend on the translator, who seems to have done a great job. I enjoy the impact of Buddhism on Paz. I wonder sometimes about how Spanish speakers relate to Buddhism, since English does not have the distinction that Spanish has with "ser y estar".

Nobel Prize Winner Octavio Paz is one of the greatest masters of Poetry and one of the greatest Latin writers of the 20th century. Here is a collection of great works beginning with his amazing long poem Sunstone. Readers and writers need to add this book to their collection of poetry.