Chilean poet Neruda 1904-73 , winner of the Nobel prize among other honors and whose love poems served as the inspiration for the movie Il Postino, was prolific, and his work took many forms, including the highly political. Stephen Mitchell, translator and reader, has wisely selected from among the various odes and love poems for this extremely well-produced audio offering. "Forgive me, Seagull, I am a poet of reality," he says, after first praising the bird, then going on to describe its barking, its stealing garbage from the mouths of other gulls. Luckily for listeners, Neruda's "reality" permits forays into imagination, such as the baby's foot that thinks it can fly or the suit that might soon wear thin or might outlive its owner and be used for burial. No subject in Neruda's hands is unworthy of praise, including the onion, the artichoke, salt, socks, or the watch on a lover's wrist. While translations of the poet's work abound in print, and there are tapes of him reading his own poems, this is only the second tape of translations available. A true delight; recommended for all libraries. Rochelle Ratner, formerly with "Soho Weekly News," New York
