Franci Louann
Argentina Two, Uruguay Too, Cuba Tambien.
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada: Ekstasis Edition, 2021. First edition. 9781771714464 157 pages.
Softcover volume, measuring approximately 6" x 9", is new.
"Franci Louann's "Argentina Two / Uruguay Too / Cuba Tambien" is a delightful follow up to her earlier "Argentina poesia." This volume is a rich, playful but serious romp through her travel adventures in three Latino cultures. Louann creates a hybrid form she calls poemoirs. Through her use of "Spanglish," readers will find themselves awakening inside another language. The pleasures of wine and exotic food merge with politics, social commentary, and intimate interconnections with friends and strangers. Louann's poems invite us to taste, touch, smell, hear, and see more deeply our capacity for intercommunication. The secular and the sacred become as one: "no soy católica / but somehow / it's about godliness / Sunday morning / in the cathedral's souvenir shop." (Susan McCaslin)