Citizens of Beauty

<DIV>Now available in English for the first time, translated by the poet Jack Hirschman, this beautiful collection of poems by the Algerian poet Jean S&eacute;nac (1926&ndash;1973) was originally published when he was forty-one. S&eacute;nac represented the hope of the new generation of Algerians who were celebrating their independence from France after 130 years of colonialism, and in the tradition of Ren&eacute; Char and the early Albert Camus, he portrayed an Algeria whose land and people would finally sing with their own voice. S&eacute;nac celebrates revolution, love, and the body, beginning with the resonant verses: &ldquo;And now we&rsquo;ll sing love / for there&rsquo;s no Revolution without love.&rdquo; He sang, as well, of beauty: &ldquo;No morning without smiling. / Beauty on our lips is one continuous fruit.&rdquo;</DIV>