Richard Blanco was made in Cuba, assembled in Spain, and imported to the United States. His books of poetry include: Looking for The Gulf Motel, Directions to the Beach of the Dead, and City of a Hundred Fires.
Evocative, imagistic, accessible poems exploring the themes of Latino identity and the universal quest for home/place. Books of poetry by Richard Blanco include Looking for The Gulf Motel, Directions to the Beach of the Dead, and City of a Hundred Fires.
Richard Blanco Calendar of Events: If you are in the area, come to hear me read my poetry or speak at an upcoming event.
Richard Blanco books of poetry include: Looking for The Gulf Motel, Directions to the Beach of the Dead, and City of a Hundred Fires.
Envisioned as a genealogy of the heart, in this third book I explore how my family's emotion legacy has shaped, and continues to shape me.
The poems in Directions to the Beach of the Dead journal my journey both inward and outward into the world, questioning the idea of home in the foreign and the familiar, in the old and the new, through memories and hopes of what was yet to be.
I always describe this book as a cultural coming of age "story," tracing the cultural yearnings and negotiation of growing up Cuban American.
Richard Blanco was the inaugural poet for Obama in 2013. Watch and read his poem 'One Today.'
Richard Blanco selected to be inaugural poet for Obama in 2013. Links to press about Richard Blanco and the inauguration.
Richard Blanco books of poetry include: Looking for The Gulf Motel, Directions to the Beach of the Dead, and City of a Hundred Fires.
The Gulf Motel with mermaid lampposts / and ship's wheel in the lobby should still be / rising out of the sand like a cake decoration.
Not a study or a den, but El Florida / as my mother called it, a pretty name / for the room with the prettiest view...
Maybe it was the billboards promising / paradise, maybe those fifty-nine miles / with your hand in mine, maybe...
I arrive with a box of pastelitos, / a dozen red carnations, and a handful / of memories at her door...
because the winds are too strong, our Captain announces, his voice like an oracle coming through the loudspeakers of every lounge and hall, as if the ship itself were speaking.
The vias of Italy turn to memory with each turn / and clack of the train's wheels...
Morning, driving west again, away from the sun / rising in the slit of the rearview mirror, as I climb / on slabs of concrete and steel bent into a bridge / arcing with all its parabolic y-squared splendor.
Word is praise for Marina, up past 3:00 a.m. the night before her flight, preparing and packing the platos tradicionales she's now heating up in the oven...
Although Tía Miriam boasted she discovered / at least half-a-dozen uses for peanut butter--
Pescado grande was number 14, while pescado chico, was number 12...
She scratches the oranges then smells the peel, / presses an avocado just enough to judge its ripeness, / polishes the Macintoshes searching for bruises.
ven / tus olas roncas murmuran entre ellas / las luciérnagas se han cansado / las gaviotas esperan como ansiosas reinas
Photos of the life of Richard Blanco, Poetry Readings, Life in Maine, and more.
Richard Blanco was chosen to read his poetry at the Presidential Inauguration 2013.
Richard Blanco was chosen to read his poetry at the Presidential Inauguration 2013.
Look through photographs from the life of Richard Blanco -- starting in the crib & ending up writing poetry, of course!
Celebrating the book launch for Looking for the Gulf Motel in Miami, February 25, 2012.
Celebrating the book launch for Looking for the Gulf Motel in Madrid and Granada, 2012.
A Cuban living in Maine? Yeah, that's me. In 2009, Mark and I moved up to Bethel, a small ski-resort town at the foothills of the White Mountains in western Maine. We absolutely love it here, though I do miss my Cuban cafecito and pastelitos!
My 4-year old Basenji who keeps me on my toes!
Publicity: David Naranjo. Speaking Engagements: Alison Granucci. Manager & Partner: Mark Neveu. Author Photos. Press Kit. Social Media Links.
Richard Blanco Newsletter Sign Up: for updates on new works, poetry readings and other events.
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