Flower, Song, Dance: Aztec and Mayan Poetry

by David Bowles (Translator)

In pre-Colombian Mexico, song and dance were vital components of daily life. However, all that is left of this vast tradition of lyrical verse are fewer than 200 poems, most contained in three codices written just after the Spanish conquest. In this new translation, David Bowles employs the tools of English verse to craft accessible, powerful versions of selected songs from the Aztec and Mayan civilizations, striking a balance between the features of the original performance and the expectations of modern readers of poetry. With full-color illustrations, a thorough glossary and insightful introduction, Flower, Song, Dance brings a neglected literary tradition to life for the 21st-century.

Genres: Poetry

142 pages, Paperback

First published August 15, 2013

About the author

David Bowles is a Mexican American author and translator from south Texas. He has written several award-winning titles, most notably THEY CALL ME GÜERO and MY TWO BORDER TOWNS

His work has also been published in multiple anthologies, plus venues such as The New York Times, Strange Horizons, School Library Journal, Rattle, Translation Review, and the Journal of Children’s Literature.

Additionally, David has worked on several TV/film projects. In 2019, he co-founded the hashtag and activist movement #DignidadLiteraria, which has negotiated greater Latinx representation in publishing. He is presently the president of the Texas Institute of Letters.

Reviews

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clearly, I took my time reading through this slim volume, as I tend to do wroth poetry. Rushing through this felt very wrong, so I didn't. The best part of this collection, for me, was the way these poems illuminate a culture I know very little about. When taken as a whole, a feeling begins to emerge. How the people who created these poems dealt with things familiar (poem for a woman who died in childbirth, poems about marriage and war ) and unfamiliar (beliefs about the afterlife, references to social norms or festivals that I had not encountered elsewhere). Really worth a read for anyone with an interest in poetry or pre-Columbian cultures. It's also interesting to see some obvious notes of European influence in some (most notably references to a single God as Father and references to sexual sin).

[Michelle Hartman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This skinny book is massive in the information it gives us of Aztec and Mayan life and culture. I have been lucky enough to hear Mr. Bowles lecture on this subject and read some of these amazing poems. I think he would be well served by placing this lecture on a YouTube video and linking to this site. The poems about warriors returning to Earth as flowers touched me even though I'm a pacifist. David allows us that precious "walk in another mans shoes" with this book. It is unfortunate that the writings of these great races were destroyed but Bowels takes what is left and bids you enter a world long gone. I think the very first Doctor Who trip was to the Aztec culture. This was just as exciting and you don't have to wait for the Tardis to go back again and again.

[Jenny Blacker]

DNF

it's fine, just not for me