Compilation of essays on the work of René Depestre (1926), an award-winning Haitian literary figure best known for his poetry. Depestre has published widely in both Haiti and Paris. Among his important works are Un arc-en-ciel pour l'occident chrétien, poème mystère vaudou (1966), Journal d'un animal marin (1967), Alléluia pour une femme jardin (1981), Hadriana dans Tous mes Rêves (1988, Prix Renaudot), and Rage de vivre, oeuvres poétiques complètes (2007). He was a former communist activist and lived in exile from the Duvalier regime for many years. He is considered to be one of the most prominent figures in Haitian literature.