{"product_id":"if-today-were-tomorrow-poems-paperback","title":"If Today Were Tomorrow: Poems - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eHumberto Ak'abal\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eMichael Bazzett\u003c\/b\u003e (Translator)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"My language was born among trees, \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eit holds the taste of earth;\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003emy ancestors' tongue is my home.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e--from \"The Old Song of the Blood\"\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA legacy of land and language courses through the pages of this spirited bilingual edition, offering an expansive take on the internationally renowned work of Humberto Ak'abal, a K'iche' Maya poet born in the western highlands of Guatemala.Featuring both Ak'abal's Spanish translations from the indigenous K'iche' and English translations by acclaimed poet Michael Bazzett, this collection blossoms from the landscape of Momostenango--mountains covered in cloud forest, deep ravines, terraced fields of maize. Ak'abal's unpretentious verse models a contraconquista--counter-conquest--perspective, one that resists the impulse to impose meaning on the world and encourages us to receive it instead. \"In church,\" he writes, \"the only prayer you hear \/ comes from the trees \/ they turned into pews.\" Every living thing has its song, these poems suggest. We need only listen for it.Attuned, uncompromising, Ak'abal teaches readers to recognize grace in every earthly observation--in the wind, carrying a forgotten name. In the roots, whose floral messengers \"tell us \/ what earth is like \/ on the inside.\" Even in the birds, who \"sing in mid-flight \/ and shit while flying.\" At turns playful and pointed, this prescient entry in the Seedbank series is a transcendent celebration of both K'iche' indigeneity and Ak'abal's lifetime of work.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eHumberto Ak'abal\u003c\/b\u003e (1952-2019) was a K'iche' Maya poet from Guatemala. His book \u003ci\u003eGuardián de la caída de agua\u003c\/i\u003e (\u003ci\u003eGuardian of the Waterfall\u003c\/i\u003e) was named book of the year by Association of Guatemalan Journalists and received their Golden Quetzal award in 1993. In 2004, he declined to receive the Guatemala National Prize in Literature because it is named for Miguel Ángel Asturias, whom Ak'abal accused of encouraging racism. Ak'abal, a recipient of a Guggenheim fellowship, passed away on January 28, 2019.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eMichael Bazzett \u003c\/b\u003eis the author of \u003ci\u003eThe Echo \u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eChamber\u003c\/i\u003e, as well as five other collections of poems, including \u003ci\u003eThe Interrogation\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eYou Must Remember This\u003c\/i\u003e, winner of the Lindquist \u0026amp; Vennum Prize for Poetry. He is also the translator of \u003ci\u003eThe Popol Vuh\u003c\/i\u003e, which was long-listed for the National Translation Award and named one of the best books of poetry in 2018 by the \u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e. Bazzett is a poet, teacher, and 2017 National Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellow. His work has appeared in \u003ci\u003ePloughshares\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eMassachusetts Review\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003ePleiades\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eGuernica\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eVirginia Quarterly Review\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eCopper Nickel\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Rumpus\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eBest New Poets\u003c\/i\u003e. He lives in Minneapolis.\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 312\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.9 x 8.4 x 5.4 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e June 25, 2024\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51750589333792,"sku":"9781571311610","price":20.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/386853cce7d98cf717cbbb99883701af.webp?v=1779954042","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/if-today-were-tomorrow-poems-paperback","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}