The thirty-two Portuguese poets included in this anthology span several generations, although the poems selected to represent them have all appeared within the last twelve years. As the editor explains in his preface, attention has been focused on post-revolutionary attitudes and preoccupations: the aftermath of colonial wars, the cultural upheaval that came with free expression after almost fifty years of repressive government, the inevitable betrayals and disappointments, the radical changes in social values and the upsurge of feminism. These factors provoke a wide spectrum of moods ranging from anger and frustration to tranquil acceptance of the new order.

As for the poets themselves, the reader will have no difficulty in identifying experienced craftsmanship such as that of Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, Eugénio de Andrade, Pedro Tamen, Rui Knopfli and Luiz Amaro. Their poems are characterized by a greater propensity towards confessional discourse and a closer adherence to structured lyricism. Andresen's delphic utterances are those of the high priestess of an older generation while Eugénio de Andrade's bold intimacy and trenchant phrasing single him out as a superior talent whose reputation has been acknowledged beyond the confines of his native Portugal, a poet who in his own words only knows 'the paths of thirst that show the direction of the origins'.

Younger poets in this anthology who voice their concern with political issues frequently resort to clichéd statements about capitalist greed and human exploitation, but there is conviction and urgency in Francisco Marques' poem 'Unprotected', ...