Landscape with Yellow Birds

"The best Spanish poet of the second half of the twentieth century."—Juan Goytisolo
"One of the most important poets of postwar literature."—El País
"Valente exemplified poetic integrity, pushing poetry into terrains that compete with religious, mystical and Heideggerian notions of inner being."—The Guardian
The summit of song
The nightingale and you
are finally the same.
In the mirror your image has faded. I could no longer see you when I looked at myself.
For the first time in English: a bilingual, comprehensive selection of poems from each of hthe published books by Spain's most important postwar poet, winner of the Premio Nacional de Literature. A "mystic poet in a modern mode," José Ángel Valente is renowned as a platonist of the word who strips language bare. Among a variety of forms, from experimental to prose, his poems conjure stunning, vibrant lyrics of absolute immediacy.
José Ángel Valente (1929–2000) was a poet, essayist, and translator. He was the recipient of many literary awards, including the Premio Adonáis for poetry, the Premio Príncipe de Asturias de las Letras, and the Premio Nacional de Literatura, awarded posthumously for his body of work in 2000.
Tom Christensen has translated the works of Carlos Fuentes, Alejo Carpentier, and Julio Cortázar, among others. His translation of Ballets Without Music, Without Dancers, Without Anything by Louis-Ferdinand Céline was a finalist for the PEN America West Translation Award.