(3) YA Perhaps unsurprisingly given his namesake, Neruda Diaz is in love with love, aspiring to the kind of enduring romance he believes his parents share. As Neruda discovers in several ways, however, real love is both more complicated and more inscrutable than he had imagined. Featuring a realistically diverse set of characters and a thoughtful protagonist, this absorbing romance also offers plenty of reflection on art and creativity.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Julie Paschkis. Brown opens with Neftali's boyhood love of reading, writing, and nature, celebrating the subjects that informed his poetry and his "dreams of peace." Paschkis's signature effusions of color and stylized forms are embellished with words--in English, Spanish, and other languages--poetically related in both sound and sense. It all adds up to an intriguing dramatization of Neruda's themes and concerns. Reading list, websites.

Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2011

(1) 4-6 Illustrated by Peter Sís. Perfect is the union that resulted in this novel: the subject, Chilean poet Pablo Neruda (1904–73); author Ryan who re-creates Neruda's spirit and sensibility; and the Czech-born illustrator Sís whose escape from oppression so hauntingly resembles Neruda's struggle for creative freedom. Sís's introspective, emotion-charged drawings spring naturally from this lyrical account of a difficult childhood. An author's note and several Neruda poems are appended.

Reviewer: Joanna Rudge Long | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2010

(4) YA Latino Biography Library series. The contributions of Chilean poet and activist Neruda are covered in this serviceable biography. His early life is examined as well as his use of poetry to support political campaigns during the late 1930s. The text is choppy, but the information provided is wide-ranging. Sidebars offer some historical perspective; average-quality photos round out the presentation. Reading list, timeline, websites. Ind.

Reviewer: Alissa C. Salamone

(4) 4-6 Translated by Sean Higgins. Illustrated by Manuel Monroy. Poems by Pablo Neruda. In anecdotes full of joie d'esprit, Chilean writer Poli Délano recounts childhood experiences during the time he and his diplomat parents lived with Nobel Prize–winning poet Pablo Neruda in Mexico. One of Neruda's poems follows each chapter, but the poems are too sophisticated for the book's audience. While this memoir is full of charming and candid detail, it's best suited to those already familiar with Neruda's work.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(4) K-3 This look at how Neruda's childhood in a frontier town in Chile shaped his writing elegantly incorporates passages from his poetry and prose. Influenced by the stories of his stepmother and encouraged by teacher/poet Gabriela Mistral, Neruda finds his own song as a poet. Ray's warm-hued paintings and musical language capture the power of place, although the text is overly long. Timeline.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(4) YA Hispanic Biographies series. Published spring 1998. These are clearly written, if occasionally repetitive, biographies of Cuban-American singer Estefan, Puerto Rican actor Juliß, and Chilean poet Neruda. The books trace their subjects' professional and personal lives, while emphasizing their Hispanic backgrounds. The accompanying black-and-white photographs are occasionally poorly reproduced. Neruda includes a glossary. Bib., ind.

Reviewer: Peter D. Sieruta