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Photo by Katie King

Luis García Montero (b. 1958, luisgarciamontero.com) is an acclaimed Spanish poet, novelist, and essayist. He helped found the poetic movement called “Poetry of Experience,” in which everyday activities illuminate the hopes and fears that mark the post-Franco era. “Room 219” appears in Habitaciones separadas (Separate rooms), which won Spain’s National Poetry Prize in 1995.