Wednesday night, the anthology The Wind Shifts: New Latino Poetry presented the Chicago reading of its ongoing national tour, in collaboration with the Guild Complex, Letras Latinas, and Poetry magazine, at Pilsen’s Décima Musa, which is a fantastic space—high ceilings, stucco walls, tall plants, Frieda Kahlo images, and, my favorite, the unicorn statue rearing on top of the piano. Surroundings aside, the real delights of the evening were the three readers from the anthology, Rosa Alcalá, Kevin A. González, and Carolina Monsivais, who read their own work and selections of other poets featured in The Wind Shifts. The ever-delightful Johnny Vázquez Paz emcee’d, lending her sass and enthusiasm, and completed the evening by reading a poem by Brenda Cárdenas.

Kevin González was next, and delivered his jaw-droppingly good lines. His poems and stories have appeared from Poetry to Playboy, as well in Best New American Voices and Best American Nonrequired Reading. He had a terrific reading style—earnest but savvy, at ease but arresting. Listen to him read “Skin” at From the Fishhouse; here’s an excerpt:

When you see
your father’s name on the Caller ID,
a shot of whiskey spills suddenly
inside you.

Carolina Monsivais finished out the evening; her poems often address the inner workings of family. Her infant son happened to be in attendance, and clearly enjoyed hearing his mother’s voice in stereo. Her imagery gains accumulative strength throughout each poem, and her endings often veer off into directions foreign to the rest of the poem. Here’s the end of “How the Eye Works,” which is included in The Wind Shifts:

The next Palabra Pura will be June 17, featuring Emma Trelles, a poet from Miami, and Jacob Saenz, one of Chicago’s finest. Come to Décima Musa for another fine evening of poetry.