Author Luis J. Rodriguez Named L.A. Poet Laureate
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles has a new poet laureate — best-selling author Luis J. Rodriguez.
Mayor Eric Garcetti announced Thursday that he's appointing Rodriguez to the two-year post.
Rodriguez will compose poems about the city and host writing workshops and public readings.
He's best known for a memoir called "Always Running: La Vida Loca Gang Days in LA."
The book describes how literature helped Rodriguez escape a life of street-gang violence.
He's also published several volumes of poetry.
Rodriguez and his wife, Trini, operate Tia Chucha's, a bookstore and cultural center in the city's San Fernando Valley.
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