Ahmos Zu-Bolton II, one of the most dynamic poets and energetic literary organizers of the 1970s and 1980s, is an artist who applies much of his talent to the community while issuing his own compositions sparingly. His work as a literary publisher and book distributor in the South served as a practical exercise of ideas put forward by the black arts movement developed in the nation's large cities in the 1960s. In some ways, Zu-Bolton's work and career also present the fulfillment of both integrationist and black nationalist ideas current since the late 1940s. A poet could scarcely find a more richly diverse historical tradition, and Zu-Bolton, as both writer and publisher, has attempted to reconcile the contradictions presented by this heritage.

Born 21 October 1935 in Poplarville, Mississippi, Ahmos Zu-Bolton II grew up in the rural community of DeRidder, Louisiana, near the Texas border. He is the eldest of...