Oliver de la Paz

The poems in this collection follow Fidelito and his family from the Philippines to the United States. I enjoyed how different folk tales weave into the family story, particularly the bird imagery. De la Paz is clearly a talented poet--among my favorites in the collection are "Insects in Maria Elena's Kitchen," "Fidelito Sails over Manila," "School Years," "The Fourth Madonna," and "An Anatomy of Birds." Three and a half stars; I really did enjoy this.

Here is one of my favorite excerpts from "At Sea Domingo Learned to Steady His Hand" (Fidelito watches his father shaving):

The faucet's slurred talk: a hair the drain could not swallow, the sounds of / a wet deck's sway as sea-storms rock iron ships like empty plastic cups in / the wind.

Fidelito's father, his eyes filled with boats and sailor's boots, steadies / himself by spreading his feet wide like the stance of a man guarding a / door, like a man whose balance is turned by wave-crest and spume at the / hull side. The blade's prow cuts through the Pacific, past the mountains of / his face like a tiller, like the furrow of his boy's forehead in surprise when / Domingo cuts himself and the water in the sink blossoms.… (mere)