Grape Leaves: A Century of Arab American Poetry

Rating:
Summary: A gathering of Arab-American voices
Review: "Grape Leaves: A Century of Arab-American Poetry," edited by Gregory Orfalea and Sharif Elmusa, is definitely an eye-opening anthology. This volume brings together the work of several generations of Arab-American poets, from Ameen Rihani (1876-1940) to Elmaz Abinader (b. 1954). There are both U.S.-born poets and immigrants.

Altogether, 20 poets are represented. The editors include a brief biography of each poet, together with a selection of his or her work. The short bios offer fascinating glimpses into Arab-American literary history. There are both poems originally written in English, as well as English translations of poems that were originally written in Arabic.

Some of my favorite poems in this anthology are the following: Kahlil Gibran's romantic "Song of the Wave"; Elia Abu Madi's richly evocative love poem "Holiday Present"; D.H. Melhem's painful "To an Ethiopian Child"; Samuel Hazo's "Some Words for President Wilson," which reflects on an iconic U.S. leader; H.S. Hamod's "Dying with the Wrong Name," which deals with Ellis Island and the immigrant experience; and Sharif S. Elmusa's "She Fans the Word," about the joys and wonders of language. This is just a small sampling of the poems in this book.

I consider myself fairly knowledgeable about the various ethnic literatures of the United States (African-American, Native American, Jewish American, etc.) but I must admit that "Grape Leaves" really opened my eyes to an ethnic literature about which I have been quite ignorant. In addition to being a fine collection of poetry, "Grape Leaves" reminds us that Arab Americans have been a part of America for a long time. Hopefully this book will help get some recognition for the cultural contributions of Arab Americans.

Rating:
Summary: A gathering of Arab-American voices
Review: "Grape Leaves: A Century of Arab-American Poetry," edited by Gregory Orfalea and Sharif Elmusa, is definitely an eye-opening anthology. This volume brings together the work of several generations of Arab-American poets, from Ameen Rihani (1876-1940) to Elmaz Abinader (b. 1954). There are both U.S.-born poets and immigrants.

Altogether, 20 poets are represented. The editors include a brief biography of each poet, together with a selection of his or her work. The short bios offer fascinating glimpses into Arab-American literary history. There are both poems originally written in English, as well as English translations of poems that were originally written in Arabic.

Some of my favorite poems in this anthology are the following: Kahlil Gibran's romantic "Song of the Wave"; Elia Abu Madi's richly evocative love poem "Holiday Present"; D.H. Melhem's painful "To an Ethiopian Child"; Samuel Hazo's "Some Words for President Wilson," which reflects on an iconic U.S. leader; H.S. Hamod's "Dying with the Wrong Name," which deals with Ellis Island and the immigrant experience; and Sharif S. Elmusa's "She Fans the Word," about the joys and wonders of language. This is just a small sampling of the poems in this book.

I consider myself fairly knowledgeable about the various ethnic literatures of the United States (African-American, Native American, Jewish American, etc.) but I must admit that "Grape Leaves" really opened my eyes to an ethnic literature about which I have been quite ignorant. In addition to being a fine collection of poetry, "Grape Leaves" reminds us that Arab Americans have been a part of America for a long time. Hopefully this book will help get some recognition for the cultural contributions of Arab Americans.

Rating:
Summary: Grape Leaves: A century of Arab-American Poetry
Review: Gibran was not an Arab. He was an Lebanese Assyrian. This intellectual ethnic genocide needs to STOP.

Rating:
Summary: Grape Leaves: A century of Arab-American Poetry
Review: Gibran was not an Arab. He was an Lebanese Assyrian. This intellectual ethnic genocide needs to STOP.

Rating:
Summary: A welcome re-publication
Review: This is a welcome paperback re-publication of an introductory anthology of Arab-Americans' vibrant, often people-centered contributions to American literature. Presented are selections from 20 poets, from Ameen Rihani and Kahlil Gibran to the poet-editors themselves, Fawaz Turki and Naomi Shihab Nye.