The Theater of Night (Paperback)

Alberto Ros

ISBN 10: 1556592590 / ISBN 13: 9781556592591

Published by Copper Canyon Press,U.S., 2007

About this Item

Paperback. "Ros writes in a serenely clear manner."-The New York Times Book Review"Ros' verse inhabits a country of his own making, sometimes political, often personal, with the familiarity and pungency of an Arizona chili."-The Christian Science MonitorFollowing the success of his National Book Award nomination, Alberto Ros' new book is filled with magic, marvel, and emotional truth. Set along the elusive Mexican-American border, his poems trace the lives and loves of an elderly couple, Clemente and Ventura, through their childhood and courtship to marriage, maturity, old age, and death.From The Chair She Sits InI've heard this thing where, when someone dies, People close up all the holes around the house- The keyholes, the chimney, the windows, Even the mouths of the animals, the dogs and the pigs. It's so the soul won't be confused, or tempted. It's so when the soul comes out of the body it's been in, But which doesn't work anymore, It won't simply go into another one And try to make itself at home, Pretending as if nothing happened . . .Ros' narratives are both surreal and hyper-real, creating the hard, sweet weave of two lives becoming one. The National Book Award judges noted that Ros is a "poet of reverie," and like the best of storytellers he charms his readers, making us care deeply for-even love-these people we read.Alberto Ros is the poet laureate of Arizona and teaches at Arizona State University. He is the author of eight books of poetry, three collections of short stories, and a memoir. Ros is the recipient of numerous awards, and his work is included in over 175 national and international literary anthologies. His work is regularly taught and translated and has been adapted to dance and both classical and popular music. National Book Award nominee Ros writes a life-long love story that unfolds along the Mexican-American border Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9781556592591

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Theater of Night (Paperback)
• Publisher: Copper Canyon Press,U.S.
• Publication Date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1556592590
• ISBN 13: 9781556592591
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

“In this rhapsodic series of poems, Ríos presents the story of Ventura and Clemente Ríos, a married couple living near the United States-Mexico border. . . . Ríos's project [is] indebted to magic realism but rooted in naturalism.”—The New Yorker

“Ríos creates the feeling of enchanted or intimate lore within a family [and] evokes the mysterious and unexpected forces that dwell inside the familiar.”—The Washington Post

Now in paperback, and following the success of his National Book Award nomination, Alberto Ríos' new book is filled with magic, marvel, and emotional truth. Set along the elusive southern border, his poems trace the lives and loves of an elderly couple through their childhood and courtship to marriage, maturity, old age, and death. Like the best of storytellers, Ríos charms his readers, making us care deeply—even love—these people we read.

From “The Chair She Sits In”:

I've heard this thing where, when someone dies,
People close up all the holes around the house-
The keyholes, the chimney, the windows,
Even the mouths of the animals, the dogs and the pigs.
It's so the soul won't be confused, or tempted . . .

Alberto Ríos, the poet laureate of Arizona, teaches at Arizona State University. He is the author of eight books of poetry, three collections of short stories, and a memoir.

About the Author

Alberto Ríos served as the Arizona State Poet, teaches at Arizona State University, and is the author of nine books of poetry, three collections of short stories, an a memoir. His book of poems, The Smallest Muscle in the Human Body, was nominated for the National Book Award in Poetry.