Gary Soto is an American poet who has authored thirteen poetry collections. His most famous poem, ‘Oranges,’ is read by students around the world. His New and Selected Poems was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Award and the National Book Award. His work has been translated into many different languages.
Gary Soto’s ‘Teaching English from an Old Composition Book’ is about a teacher instructing some Mexican-American immigrant students in a night school. Soto portrays their harsh living conditions and their struggle to cope in a new culture.
My chalk is no longer than a chip of fingernail,
Chip by which I must explain this Monday
Night the verbs “to get;” “to wear,” “to cut.”
‘Field Poem’ by Gary Soto is a short and powerful poem that describes a speaker’s experience at the end of a workday. The poet uses imagery to depict leaving a cotton field and climbing on a bus.