The Serpent and the Fire: Poetries of the Americas from Origins to Present

Challenging the notion of “American” poetry by including the entire Americas from ancient pre-Columbian cultures to the present, this expansive anthology is divided into thematic “galleries” and “maps,” guiding readers through a maze of poetic innovations and traditions. The first gallery juxtaposes Indigenous oral traditions with European colonizers’ written records, resulting in a powerful dialogue between conquerors and conquered: “Mayans started writing when English (even Old English) had yet to be born. By the seventh century A.D., when English literature made its first tentative appearance, Mayans had a long tradition of inscribing... the walls of temples and palaces, and they had also begun to write books.” Critical to the anthology’s success is the notion of “omnipoetics,” challenging the hierarchical structures of literary canon formation by exploring “on a worldwide scale, toward an anthology of everything.” The collection features surprising and exciting juxtapositions: Roger Williams appears next to Úrsula de Jesús, followed by a poem by Anne Bradstreet. This seminal effort redefines what it means to write and read poetry in the Americas. It’s a must-read. (Oct.)