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Frank Báez and Cristina Bendek in conversation with Yeniter Poleo

Writing from the Caribbean

Cartagena 2026, 

Frank Báez (Dominican Republic) and Cristina Bendek (Colombia) are from different places, and their writing too occupies different latitudes — poetry and non-fiction in the first case, novels and essays in the case of Bendek. But their creative processes all take place by the shores of the same sea: the Caribbean, with images and topics bathed by the same sun. Bajo otras luces, by Báez, is the portrait of a region and a book about exile, a poet’s personal view of a territory. Los cristales de la sal, by Bendek, talks about returning to one’s roots, to San Andrés, where the protagonist starts to question her identity and relationship with the island. In conversation with Yeniter Poleo.

Frank Báez and Cristina Bendek in conversation with Yeniter Poleo