Milk and Filth (Camino del Sol)

Adding to the Latina tradition, Carmen Gim©nez Smith, politically aware and feminist-oriented, focuses on general cultural references rather than a sentimental personal narrative. She speaks of sexual politics and family in a fierce, determined tone voracious in its opinions about freedom and responsibility.

The author engages in mythology and art history, musically wooing the reader with texture and voice. As she references such disparate cultural figures as filmmaker Lars Von Trier, Annie from the film Annie Get Your Gun, Nabokov€s Lolita, facebook entries and Greek gods, they appear as part of the poet€s cultural critique.

Phrases such as €œthe caustic domain of urchins€ and €œthe gelatin shiver of tea€s surface€ take the poems from lyrical images to comic humor to angry, intense commentary. On writing about €œdowngrading into human,€ she says, €œThen what? Amorality, osteoporosis and not even a marble estuary for the ages.€

Gim©nez Smith€s poetic arsenal includes rapier-sharp wordplay mixed with humor, at times self-deprecating, at others an ironic comment on the postmodern world, all interwoven with imaginative language of unexpected force and surreal beauty. Revealing a long view of gender issues and civil rights, the author presents a clever, comic perspective. Her poems take the reader to unusual places as she uses rhythm, images, and emotion to reveal the narrator€s personality. Deftly blending a variety of tones and styles, Gim©nez Smith€s poems offer a daring and evocative look at deep cultural issues.