Bom dia, poemas.

Luanda, privately printed for the author by the NEA in November, 1971.. FIRST EDITION. 8°, original illustrated wrappers (foxed, with two small tears to front cover). Semi-abstract design on front cover repeated on title page. Small hole on first leaf, apparently from the removal of an adhesive label. Overall in very good condition. Author's signed and dated ("Dez/71") four-line presentation inscription on title page. (1 blank l., 60 pp., 1 l.). *** FIRST EDITION of the author's first book. A second edition appeared in Luanda, 1988. Born in Luanda, 1938, Abel, a bank employee in Luanda during Portuguese rule, was responsible for translations of works by Engels and Lenin, as well as another book of poems, Nome de mulher, published in Luanda, 1973. His poems have appeared in numerous anthologies published in Portugal and Angola. They have also been translated into Russian and English, appearing in anthologies published in London and in Moscow under the former Soviet Union. Along with Costa Andrade, Tomás Jorge, Henrique Abrantes, "Benúdia" (Mário Lopes Guerra), "Andiki" (Henrique Guerra), Arnaldo Santos, Aires de Almeida Santos, and António Jacinto, he was one of the principal contributors to two major Angolan literary reviews published prior to independence, the second phase of Cultura (1957-1961), and the Jornal de Angola (1953-1965). He was also a frequent contributor to newspapers.Inocência Mata (Biblos, I, 5) comments: "A sua poesia, escrita nos anos conturbados da luta pela independência política, é marcada pela consciência de uma situação sociopolítica irreconciliável e releva da sua experiência vivencial de Luanda, gerando-se do seu 'saber-sentir' a natureza, a terra e o homem. A poesia de J.A. releva, assim, de um olhar sempre crítico, sobre a precariedade sociocultural, como naquele já emblemático poema Bom Dia. Numa visão cosmorâmica da cidade, o seu olhar caleidoscópico percorre os vários estratos sociais e profissionais da população, representando-os nas realidades miúdas do seu quotidiano."*** Moser & Ferreira, Bibliografia das literaturas africanas de expressão portuguesa, p. 73 (giving an incomplete collation); A New Bibliography of the Lusophone Literatures of Africa 406. Porbase locates a single copy, at Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal. Jisc cites only the second edition. Catnyp, Melvyl, Hollis and Orbis also cite only the second edition.