ABOUT
Pablo Medina was born in Havana, Cuba, and raised in New York City from the age of twelve. A celebrated poet and novelist, his work bridges both English and Spanish, exploring the nuances of language, identity, and the complexities of Cuban heritage. Medina’s debut poetry collection, Pork Rind and Cuban Songs, was the first written directly in English by a Cuban-born author, establishing him as a pioneering voice in Cuban American literature. He has since published nine more poetry collections in English, including Sea of Broken Mirrors, and two in Spanish.
His memoir, Exiled Memories: A Cuban Childhood, offers an evocative reflection on his early life in Cuba, while his collaborations with Carolina Hospital, such as Everyone Will Have to Listen/Todos me van a tener que oír, showcase his ongoing commitment to translating and elevating the work of Cuban authors.
Medina’s work in translation is particularly notable, with his co-translation of García Lorca’s Poet in New York receiving critical acclaim, including praise from John Ashbery, who called it “the definitive version of Lorca’s masterpiece,” and Alejo Carpentier’s The Kingdom of This World, which Ilan Stavans labeled, “an achievement of the scope of Seamus Heaney’s reimagining of Beowulf.”; Most recently, he has translated the work of Cuban poet Rafael Alcides, collected in Poet in the Neighborhood: Selected Poems of Rafael Alcides.
His poetry collection Points of Balance was hailed as “nothing short of linguistic mastery,” and his novel Cubop City Blues was praised by the LA Review of Books as “rich and stunning.” His most recent novel, The Cuban Comedy, was lauded by NPR for its “smart and poignant” narrative.
In addition to his writing, Medina is a sought-after teacher and mentor. He has taught writing, literature, and translation at esteemed institutions such as Emerson College, George Washington University, and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He is currently Emeritus Professor at Emerson College, where he also served as Director of the MFA Program. His lectures and workshops have taken him to a diverse range of international venues, including the Cervantes Institutes in New York and Amman, Jordan, the Library of Congress, Universidad San Carlos in Guatemala, and the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference.
A recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Rockefeller Foundation, and others Medina’s work continues to be celebrated for its depth, linguistic artistry, and profound exploration of cultural identity. He divides his time between Williamsville, Vermont, and Cambridge, Massachusetts, and is currently on faculty at the Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers.