Tejerás el destino You Will Weave Destiny by Xánath Caraza
Traveling and being transported to another place means experiencing different seasons and times. It is an essential part of Xánath Caraza’s poetry. The feeling given by the pages of You Will Weave Destiny stems from the complexity of the images with which we are presented. These Nahuatl images and objects appear as offerings for our appreciation and to bring us closer to times that initially seem remote.
This collection is also a passionate homage to one of the women who made a difference in fifteenth century Tenochtitlan. Macuilxochitzin or Macuilxochitl was a poet born during the most prosperous period of the expansion of the Aztec civilization. Daughter of the royal advisor Tlacaelel and niece of the Tlatoani warrior Axayacatl. Her life and her texts are an example of the gender parallelism of pre-Hispanic Mexico where women had the same opportunities as men.
Xánath Caraza is a traveler, educator, poet, short story writer, and translator. She writes for La Bloga, The Smithsonian Latino Center, Revista Literaria Monolito, and Seattle Escribe.
In 2019 for the International Latino Book Awards she received Second Place for Hudson for “Best Book of Poetry in Spanish” and Second Place for Metztli for Best Short Story Collection. In 2018 for the International Latino Book Awards she received First Place for Lágrima roja for “Best Book of Poetry in Spanish by One Author” and First Place for Sin preámbulos / Without Preamble for “Best Book of Bilingual Poetry”.
Her book of poetry Syllables of Wind / Sílabas de viento received the 2015 International Book Award for Poetry. She was Writer-in-Residence at Westchester Community College, NY, 2016-2019. Caraza was the recipient of the 2014 Beca
Nebrija para Creadores, Universidad de Alcalá de Henares in Spain. She was named number one of the 2013 Top Ten Latino Authors by LatinoStories.com.
Her books of verse Where the Light is Violet, Black Ink, Ocelocíhuatl, Conjuro and her book of short fiction What the Tide Brings have won national and international recognition. Her other books of poetry are It Pierces the Skin, Balamkú, Fără preambul, Le sillabe del vento, Noche de colibríes, and Corazón pintado. Caraza has been translated into English, Italian, Romanian, and Greek; and partially translated into Nahuatl, Portuguese, Hindi, and Turkish.