Reading Journal 11

Red Hot Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States
Edited by: Lori Marie Carlson

Poems are wonderful works of art, but I tend to shy away from them. I get nervous that I will not understand the deep meaning or be able to read it with much fluency. This book was just the opposite, it was a fun and enlightening read. The poems focus on the Latina community by Latino writers; a good example of strong positive role models for students. The poems are enjoyable for people of all ages.

I appreciated that every poem is written in both English and Spanish. This has appeal to the Latin American community, and gives people of other cultures a window into another culture. The poems are separated into categories, making the reading easy and accessible; depending on what type of poem a reader might be in the mood for. I enjoyed the section Victory and the poem El triunfo by Marjorie Agosin.

As a future teacher this book of poems jumps out at me, as a book to use to show multicultural writers, poems, and use to enhance my classes knowledge and book selection. I think it is important for students to be introduced to many great writers and their texts; this collection of poems is just that, showing the Latino community and its writers.