Book Description

In “How to Eat Crow on a Cold Sunday Morning,” renowned Mexican-American poet Angela de Hoyos suggests “you start on the wings / nibbling / apologetic-like” before moving to the dry, tough giblets and on to the “gall bladder / —that green bag of biliousness— / wants to gag your throat / in righteous retribution” making you wish that you had “learned how to eat / a pound of prudence / instead.” Tension between people—men and women, Chicanos and Anglos—is a frequent theme in de Hoyo’s work. Clear and accessible, her poems about relations between the sexes are universal in their appeal. Many eloquently convey women’s issues and feelings. “Men, she said / sometimes / in order to / say it / it is / necessary / to spit / the word.” This collection showcases the work of a beloved literary activist who gave voice to marginalized communities. Born in Mexico, de Hoyos spent most of her life in San Antonio, Texas, where she saw firsthand Chicanos’ loss of language, identity and traditions. The discrimination endured by Mexican Americans runs through her work, and in one of her most well-known poems, “Arise, Chicano!,” the poet exhorts her people to free themselves from poverty and oppression. “There is no one to succor you. You must be your own messiah.” Mostly self-educated, de Hoyos was equally adept at writing in Spanish or English, and many of her poems are written in a skillful combination of the two. Containing 80 previously published poems and several that have never been published, this volume highlights a vibrant voice that calls for equality and respect for all people, regardless of gender or ethnicity.