Eugenio Montejo is regarded as Venezuela’s foremost living poet and is a crucial voice in South American literature. He is the author of twelve books of poetry, two books of essays, and a heteronymic volume of pieces. Montejo was awarded Venezuela’s National Prize for Literature in 1998 and received the prestigious Octavio Paz International Prize for poetry in 2005. He has also served as Venezuela’s ambassador to Portugal at various times. (updated 7/2010)