Which Cuban poet wrote 'Versos sencillos'?

José Martí wrote Versos sencillos. The Cuban poet published the collection in 1891, while living in New York and working intensely on ideas of Cuban independence, Latin American identity, and moral responsibility.

The poems are known for their direct language, compact musical lines, and memorable images drawn from nature, love, politics, and exile. Several poems were written in the Spanish tradition of the canción, using simple forms to express emotionally and politically complex ideas. The collection opens with Martí’s famous declaration, “Yo soy un hombre sincero,” presenting the poet as both witness and participant in history.

The best-known poem in the volume is “La niña de Guatemala,” inspired by a tragic story Martí encountered during his years abroad. Another poem, “Cultivo una rosa blanca,” became widely recognized as a statement of generosity and reconciliation. Readers sometimes confuse Martí with Nicolás Guillén, another major Cuban poet, but Guillén belonged to a later generation and wrote with a distinctive Afro-Cuban rhythmic voice.