Richard Blanco
“An engineer, poet, Cuban American… his poetry bridges cultures and languages – a mosaic of our past, our present, and our future – reflecting a nation that is hectic, colorful, and still becoming.”
– President Joe Biden, conferring the National Humanities Medal on Richard Blanco
Homeland Of My Body: New & Selected Poems
Beacon Press, Release date: October 24, 2023.
A rich, accomplished, intensely intimate collection with two full sections of new poems bookending Blanco’s selections from his five previous volumes.
In this collection of over 100 poems, Richard Blanco has carefully selected poems from his previous books that represent his evolution as a writer grappling with his identity, working to find and define “home,” and bookended them with new poems that address those issues from a fresh, more mature perspective, allowing him to approach surrendering the pain and urgency of his past explorations. Pausing at this pivotal moment in mid-career, Blanco reexamines his life-long quest to find his proverbial home and all that it encompasses: love, family, identity and ultimately art itself. In the closing section of the volume, he has come to understand and internalize the idea that “home” is not one place, not one thing, and lives both inside him and inside his art.
Upcoming Events
November 20, 2024
National Book Awards. Cipriani Wall Street, NYC.
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November 24, 2024
Miami Book Fair. Miami, FL.
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January 27, 2025
Dialogues Speaker Series, Lynn University. Boca Raton, Fl.
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June 5, 2025
The Writer’s Hotel. Boothbay Harbor, ME
Keep in Touch
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Latest News
María Magdalena Campos-Pons: “Procession of Angels for Radical Love and Unity”
Last month, I was honored to unite with all who attended the “Procession of Angels for Radical Love and Unity”; neighbors, poets, historians, musicians, puppeteers, et al who walked the 2.5 miles through the streets of East Harlem, a.k.a. El Barrio in solidarity for a more compassionate future. Thank you to María Magdalena Campos-Pons and all involved in organizing this heart-touching event; for inviting me to read “Declaration of Interdependence”
Here are some photos of the day we all came together.
Latino Poetry | The Library of America Anthology
I’m humbled to contribute to the groundbreaking, Latino Poetry | The Library of America Anthology. Edited by Rigoberto Gonzalez, it celebrates the work of over 180 poets including Jose Martí and many of my peers, mentors, and friends. Here I am reading from the anthology “Como Tú / Like You / Like Me,” and “My Voice” by Rafael Campo.
Americans Who Tell the Truth
“Like thirst, like hunger, we ache with the need
to save ourselves, and our country from itself.”
Robert Shetterly unveiled a portrait of me at The Gem Theater, in Bethel (ME), as part of his Americans Who Tell the Truth portrait series. I’m humbled to appear in his empowering collection and to read my poem, “Como Tú / Like You / Like Me” (which is excerpted above and on the portrait). I’m sincerely grateful to Robert for his art and all he does to nurture the virtues of our democracy.
CLICK for info and to explore resources for educators.
CLICK to read “Como Tú / Like You / Like Me.”
This event took place on August 8th, 2024, at the GEM Theater with Bethel Area Arts & Music (BAAM).
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