Song of the Simple Truth: The Complete Poems of Julia De Burgos

Song of the Simple Truth (Canción de la verdad sencilla) is the first bilingual edition of Julia de Burgos' complete poems. Numbering more than 200, these poems form a literary landmark—the first time her poems have appeared in a complete edition in either English or Spanish. Many of the verses presented here had been lost and are presented here for the first time in print. De Burgos broke new ground in her poetry by fusing a romantic temperament with keen political insights. This book will be essential reading for lovers of poetry and for feminists.

JULIA DE BURGOS (1914–1953), born in Puerto Rico in 1914, was an accomplished poet and journalist who was revolutionary in her politics, poetry, and feminism. Avidly supporting the cause of Puerto Rican independence, she was also an internationalist who was anti-Franco, anti-Trujillo, and anti-Somoza. As a feminist and Puerto Rican independentista she paid for her convictions and strength by being persecuted as a political figure. A cultural icon, Julia de Burgos was shamefully neglected as a poet during her lifetime. She died in New York City in 1953.

Jack Agüeros was an American poet, translator, and community activist. He died in 2014.