A Stab in the Dark: The Milestone Poetry Collection of Border Region Literature

Facundo Bernal's A Stab in the Dark (Palos de ciego) is a poetic chronicle of the struggles and joys of the Spanish-speaking community in Los Angeles and in the burgeoning border town of Mexicali during the early 1920s. Sharply satirical yet deeply empathetic, Bernal’s poems are both a landmark of Chicano literature and a captivating read. Anthony Seidman's energetic translation ― the first into English ― preserves the prickly feel of Bernal’s classic, down to the last stab. This edition also features the original Spanish text, an introduction by the prominent Mexicali writer Gabriel Trujillo Muñoz, an additional introduction by critic Josh Kun, and a foreword by writer and lawyer Yxta Maya Murray.

Facundo Bernal was a poet and journalist. He was born in 1883 in Hermosillo, Mexico. He and his brother Francisco were members of the vibrant bohemian Mexican literary community of the first decades of the 20th century. He died in 1962, in Mexicali.

Anthony Seidman is the author of three collections of poetry, including Where Thirsts Intersect (The Bitter Oleander, 2006) and, most recently, A Sleepless Man Sits Up in Bed (Eyewear, 2016). He lives in Los Angeles.

Yxta Maya Murray is a novelist, art critic, and Professor of Law at Loyola Law School, Los Angeles. She writes widely on gender justice, performance art, and the intersections of law and literature.

Josh Kun is an American author, academic, music critic, and a 2016 MacArthur Fellow. He is an Associate Professor of Communication in the Annenberg School at USC and holds a joint appointment at the Department of American Studies and Ethnicity.

Gabriel Trujillo Muñoz is a poet, narrator, essayist, and professor at the Autonomous University of Baja California, Mexicali. He is widely considered one of the most important voices in contemporary Mexican science fiction.