THE PRISON POEMS is the first complete translation into English of Miguel Hernández’s Cancionero y romancero de ausencias, a classic of 20th century Spanish poetry, comparable in many respects to the work of Lorca and Pablo Neruda. The poems in this book were mostly written while he was in prison after the defeat of Republican Spain.
About the author
Miguel Hernández (October 30, 1910-March 28, 1942), was a Spanish poet, born in Orihuela (Spain), to a poor family and given little formal education, published his first book of poetry at 23, and gained considerable fame before his death. The translator and editor is Michael Smith, a widely published poet and translator who in 2001 was the first Irish recipient of the European Academy Medal for distinguished work in the translation of poetry in Spanish, awarded by the European Academy of Poetry.