Neruda | The Biography of a Poet by Mark Eisner tells the intriguing story of renowned Chilean Poet Pablo Neruda through the examination of his poems.

A Finalist for the PEN/Bograd Weld Prize for Biography  

The most definitive biography to date of the poet Pablo Neruda, a moving portrait of one of the most intriguing and influential figures in Latin American history

Few poets have captured the global imagination like Pablo Neruda. In his native Chile, across Latin America, and in many other parts of the world, his name and legacy have become almost synonymous with liberation movements, and with the language of erotic love.

Neruda: The Poet’s Calling is the product of fifteen years of research by Mark Eisner, writer, translator, and documentary filmmaker. The book vividly depicts Neruda’s monumental life, potent verse, and ardent belief in the “poet’s obligation” to use poetry for social good. It braids together three major strands of Neruda’s life—his world-revered poetry; his political engagement; and his tumultuous, even controversial, personal life—forming a single cohesive narrative of intimacy and breadth.

The fascinating events of Neruda’s life are interspersed with Eisner’s thoughtful examinations of the poems, both as works of art in their own right and as mirrors of Neruda’s life and times. The result is a book that animates Neruda’s riveting story in a new way—one that offers a compelling narrative version of Neruda’s life and work, undergirded by exhaustive research, yet designed to bring this colossal literary figure to a broader audience.

Mark Eisner has spent most of the past two decades working on projects related to Pablo Neruda. He conceived, edited, and was one of the principal translators for The Essential Neruda: Selected Poems (City Lights, 2004). He wrote the introduction to City Lights’ first ever English translation of Neruda’s venture of the infinite man, a project he developed. He is producing a documentary film on Neruda, with support from Latino Public Broadcasting. An initial version, narrated by Isabel Allende, won the Latin American Studies Association Award of Merit in Film. Mark was also involved in the early stages of the Red Poppy Art House in San Francisco, and continues to lead Red Poppy, a literary non-profit focused on Latin American poetry. Their anthology RESISTENCIA: Poems of Protest and Revolution was published by Tin House Books on September 15, 2020. He is now at work on a new book about the life and work of revolutionary photographer Tina Modotti in 1920’s Mexico.

• ISBN: 9780062694218
• 640 Pages
• February 26, 2019

Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers