Touching the Fire: Fifteen Poets of Today's Latino Renaissance

As we approach the new century, Latino poetry is in the midst of its most vital and productive period. Poetry by Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, and Cuban Americans has changed the course of contemporary American writing forever. And it has done this by emphasizing poetry as the sound of everyday life—showing readers and other writers that the most effective manner of preserving the traditions of a culture comes from the colorful language of daily experience.

Touching the Fire recognizes t...