The Heights of Macchu Picchu - by Pablo Neruda (Paperback)

About the Book

Pablo Neruda is the world's most beloved poet, and "Alturas de Macchu Picchu" one of his greatest poetic achievements.

Book Synopsis

A poem in twelve canticles, The Heights of Macchu Picchu is perhaps Pablo Neruda's greatest contribution to poetry. This new stand-alone translation of the second section of his masterful Canto general proves the continued relevance and power of political verse.

Inspired by Neruda's journey to the ancient ruins, 'The Heights of Macchu Picchu' is a poem for the laborers and the forgotten victims of empire in the Americas. Considering the wonder and beauty of this Incan citadel, he sees through to the suffering of those who built it. "I sank my muddy and gentle hand / into the precious treasure of the earth," he says:

I dipped my forehead between the deep waves,

I ran like a single drop in peaceful sulfur,

and, like a blind man, returned to the jasmine

of our depleted human spring.

Review Quotes

"The greatest poet of the twentieth century--in any language." --Gabriel García Márquez

"'The Heights of Macchu Picchu' is a poem of ascension. . . . In its final passages, Neruda's poetry jumps from a personal hope to a global one; from a poetry dealing with the poet's heart to a poetry centered on humanity's struggles. Similar to T.S. Eliot's 1921 poem 'The Waste Land' in showing the emptiness of the modern world, 'The Heights of Macchu Picch'u offers a solution that Eliot never did: become one with your past and use this to create a better future." --BBC

"The greatest poet of the twentieth century-in any language." --Gabriel Garcíiacute;a Máaacute;rquez

"'The Heights of Macchu Picchu' is a poem of ascension. . . . In its final passages, Neruda's poetry jumps from a personal hope to a global one; from a poetry dealing with the poet's heart to a poetry centered on humanity's struggles. Similar to T.S. Eliot's 1921 poem 'The Waste Land' in showing the emptiness of the modern world, 'The Heights of Macchu Picch'u offers a solution that Eliot never did: become one with your past and use this to create a better future." --BBC

About the Author

Pablo Neruda (1904-1973) held diplomatic posts in Asian and European countries. After joining the Communist Party, Neruda was elected to the Chilean Senate but was forced to live in exile in Mexico for several years. Eventually he established a permanent home on Isla Negra. In 1970 he was appointed as Chile's ambassador to France; in 1971 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Tomás Q. Morín: Tomás Q. Morín was born in Texas and educated at Texas State University and Johns Hopkins University. He is the recipient of scholarships from the Fine Arts Work Center, Bread Loaf Writer's Conference, and the New York State Summer Writers Institute. His debut volume of poetry, A Larger Country, won the APR/Honickman First Book Prize. He lives in San Marcos, Texas, and teaches at Texas State University.