Of Fire and Rain

The new book by Joaquin Zihuatanejo and Natasha Carrizosa, of fire and rain, has been called a testimony of life and love that spans form the ghettos of the West Indies to the barrio of the Lower East Side. It is a series of powerful poems that will leave readers stunned and yearning for more. There is an honesty in these poems, a richness of voice that is without question that of a poet. In his solo collection, Barrio Songs, Joaquin attempts to capture the struggle of his people, the lost barrio boys of his youth, but in, of fire and rain, both he and carrizosa attempt to capture the struggle of many different kinds of people. The streets of Brooklyn, the deserts of Sudan and the people that inhabit them can be found in these poems. But perhaps the most gripping thing that these poems accomplish is how eloquently they give voice to the voiceless. Perhaps the goal of poetry is to tell an awful truth in a beautiful way. These poems do this. Jimmy Santiago Baca, author of Immigrants in our Own Land and a Place to Stand had this to say about the collection, 'The poetry is lush and green and rich. One turns from inside the heart's thorny and parched landscape and encounters the poetic word to redeem the salt in the wound, the long-for kiss, to cool the burning-- these poems do just this.' Naomi Shihab Nye, author of Yellow Glove and Different Ways to Pray commented on the collection, 'Natasha & Joaquin write passionate, potent poems-their voices unafraid of questioning and reckoning-here's a cheer for their full hearts, vivid hopes & soulful journeys-'