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A review by justabookholic
The Poet Slave of Cuba: A Biography of Juan Francisco Manzano by Margarita Engle, Sean Qualls
4.0
(read via audiobook)
A truly unique biography, one entirely of prose and reflecting upon a life of unimaginable pain and struggle but also one of virtue and determination. It is an haunting combination of both beauty and hideous cruelty as Engle's verses have a quality of imagery that evokes clarity and hope.
This book tells the true story of Juan Francisco Manzano, a real person who was into slavery during the time of Spanish colonial rule in Cuba. It is not a light read as it starkly shows the true horrors of slavery but it is a book that should be read. Engle uses poetry to capture a composite of Marzano's life in slavery, both what was known and what could have been, basing it off of part of his own autobiography as regretfully the second half of it was never found.
A truly unique biography, one entirely of prose and reflecting upon a life of unimaginable pain and struggle but also one of virtue and determination. It is an haunting combination of both beauty and hideous cruelty as Engle's verses have a quality of imagery that evokes clarity and hope.
This book tells the true story of Juan Francisco Manzano, a real person who was into slavery during the time of Spanish colonial rule in Cuba. It is not a light read as it starkly shows the true horrors of slavery but it is a book that should be read. Engle uses poetry to capture a composite of Marzano's life in slavery, both what was known and what could have been, basing it off of part of his own autobiography as regretfully the second half of it was never found.