cover image Alabanza: New and Selected Poems, 1982-2002

Alabanza: New and Selected Poems, 1982-2002

Martin Espada. W. W. Norton & Company, $24.95 (256pp) ISBN 978-0-393-05192-6

The number of titles published during National Poetry Month strained this column's space, but the following titles can just as easily help celebrate the solstice. The title poem of Mart n Espada's Alabanza: New And Selected Poems 1982- 2002, is one of nearly 20 new pieces in this summation of 20 years of work. The poem is subtitled ""In Praise of Local 100,"" for the 43 members of the Hotel and Restaurant Workers Union killed when Windows on the World was destroyed, and it closes the book: ""Alabanza I say, even if God has no face."" ""Alabanza"" means ""Praise.""