Wise Fish: Tales in 6/8 Time

A lyrical dance of English, Spanish, and African dialects infuses these poems of myth and migration.

Laced with Afro-Caribbean history and myth and interspersed with Spanish, Yoruba, and Lukumi dialects, these poems create a poetic atlas of cultures as they document the centuries-long, open-sea migrations from Africa to the Caribbean to the Florida coast. Recurring throughout these poems is the image of the wise fish, a witness whose eyes were never closed to the perilous journeys that brought so many to the shores of North America, creating a vibrant Afro-Latino-Caribbean culture tempered by loss and memory. Infused with the musicality of the oral tradition, this collection gives voice to the great courage and tragedy of those who weather the migratory experience.

A Cuban-Dominican poet and Ifa priest from Miami, Adrian Castro writes as if “Chano Pozo were hitting the keys of a typewriter instead of the skin of a drum.” He has performed at the Nuyorican Poets’ Café in New York, Naropa Institute in Boulder, the Hemingway Literary Festival in Chicago, and the Miami Book Fair International. He is the author of Cantos to Blood & Honey, Wise Fish, and, most recently, Handling Destiny.