Book record
The poems of Sidney West
Juan Gelman
Translated from Spanish by Katherine M. Hedeen
The poems of Sidney West, by Juan Gelman, is a Spanish poetry collection from Argentina, translated by Katherine Hedeen, published by Salt Pub. in 2009. It is an Argentine book by Juan Gelman, built through the invented figure of Sidney West. The collection is a beautiful example of persona as displacement, where grief, humor, exile, and translation-like ventriloquism begin to blur. I would not approach it as a book that needs to be solved or reduced to context before it can begin working. Start with the pressure of the title, the texture of the translated line, and the feeling of a voice making room for itself in English. For this library, the book matters as more than a record of Argentina; it is an invitation to let poetry remain particular, difficult, and alive without asking it to behave like explanation.
- Published
- 2009
- Publisher
- Salt Pub.
- Language
- Spanish
- Country
- Argentina
- ISBN
- 9781844714643