Two Poems by Mohammad-Ali Sepanlou

Mohammad-Ali Sepanlou, an Iranian poet, essayist, and literary critic, was born in 1940. Nicknamed the Poet of Tehran for his evocative panegyrics on Iran’s capital, Sepanlou published more than sixty volumes of poetry and essays. He was also a founding member of the Writers’ Association of Iran. Sepanlou was the recipient of several distinctions, including Legion de Honneur and Le prix Max-Jacob. He died in May 2015, aged seventy-four.

Siavash Saadlou is a writer and literary translator whose works of fiction, creative nonfiction, and criticism have appeared in Plenitude Magazine, Southeast Review, and Minor Literature[s], among other journals. His poetry has recently been anthologized in Essential Voices: Poetry of Iran and Its Diaspora (Green Linden Press). Saadlou is also the recipient of the 55th Cole Swensen Prize for Translation. He holds an MFA in creative writing from Saint Mary’s College of California.