Bücher von Juventino Manzano

My grandfather, went from one side of the globe to the other on board LST 534, which saw action in two of the worst battlefields of World War II, the Invasion of Normandy, and the Invasion of Okinawa. I have attempted to put this story together from the perspective of my grandfather through his letters to his parents and other ephemera from the midst of the conflagration.

Interviews with my Godfather contains two interviews with Entomologist Dr. Edward Mockford on his discovery of the world's smallest insect, a type of parasitic wasp, and his work on biological warfare at Camp Detrick. It also includes a poem by his Godson, Juventino Manzano, that was nominated for the Pushcart award in 2008. If you are interested in entomology or biological warfare this is a must read.

The Nineties were the coming of age for many of Generation X. This work captures that decade. It is a life lived. It is fiction in that all in the past is only a memory, and thus does not have any real existence and the people that lived through it no longer exist as they were. I hope this work captures the idiocy and joy of being a member of the last generation that still had unlimited access to unmediated experiences, and of those, there were many. This promiscuous young man, a want to be writer, poet, hopeless romantic, druggie, drop out, proletariat, porno store clerk, and many other roles, wanted to find the other half. The other half he thought would make him complete. This young man is long gone. Generation X was the final generation before the digital world took over-the generation that watched the transformation of the country after 9/11. No other generation had it so good-material prosperity, relative freedom, and great music, and the very prominent relics of the generation before them for inspiration along with the writers and artists and filmmakers that shaped a worldview, and the ideals of the boomers, think hippies, still shined through.

Suddenly, there is a blur in front of my face. I try to see it and I do not see anything-there it is again. I see a flash of green and scarlet and realize that there is a hummingbird hovering over my head. It rockets,hovers, bounces, and dodges unknown particles only it sees, and now it is less than a yard away looking directly at me. It dives into one of the moonflowers and in a split second has zoomed up into the sky without a trace. I wonder if they are illegal in Arizona, too. I can see me-the flower seed rebel wearing a bright cannabis leaf green, purple, burgundy, spiral pattern tie dye t-shirt, riding on a giant hummingbird set up with saddle bags filled with morning glory and moonflower seeds.Everywhere we go we spread color-from the moment of our blurry arrival to months later, when all those illegal vines sprout, leaving color on the ground in the wake of our flight path. I exhale again watching thesmoke vanish into the sky where the hummingbird has gone to contemplate our future together.

From the Tree contains 25 years of writing; what I consider to be my more worthwhile of being-passed-on-poetry. This collection contains poetry from various segments of my life spanning from the age of 19 to 44 and it has been, to paraphrase the Grateful Dead, a long strange trip. I have gone from being 19 and knowing all, to being 44 and knowing little. It is interesting that people, aside from the self, make life so interesting and many of you that have known me throughout this time period will see yourself in these words. This work is for all of you.