Drum Dream Girl Review
- The Choate Piggy
- Oct 22, 2019
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 26, 2020
Title: Drum Dream Girl
Author: Margarita Engle
The poem “Drum Dream Girl” tells the story of Millo Castro Zaldarriaga, a young Chinese-African-Cuban girl whose childhood dream of drumming broke the traditional Cuban taboo against female drummers. Margarita Engle, the poet, is herself a Cuban-American and explains what drew her to Millo’s story in an interview with Kirkus Reviews, “She opened the way for women drummers, who are common on the island today.” Millo’s journey in drumming is told both in steady beats and in more improvised lyricism. The poem itself reads as a musical ode that speaks to Millo’s artistry with a song of its own. Her struggle in having her dreams recognized by others is a narrative of persistence, passion, and daring. At age ten, in 1932, Millo and her older sisters performed as Anacaona, the first “all-girl dance band” in Cuba. Their namesake, Anacaona, was a powerful Taino cacique (chief) famous for her poetry, songs, and areitos (traditional dances). Five years later, Millo was cheered on by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt while playing her bongó drums for President Franklin Delano Roosevelt at his birthday celebration in New York City. Millo Castro Zaldarriaga went on to become a world famous musician who played alongside the jazz greats of her time.
Link to full poem: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/141837/drum-dream-girl
Links to video/playlist of sisters performing and to picture book commercial:
Citations
Carrasco Cara Chards, María Isabel. “Anacaona: The Golden Flower Queen Killed For Refusing To Be A Concubine.” Google, Google, 12 July 2018, www.google.com/amp/s/culturacolectiva.com/history/anacaona-haitian-queen/amp.
Danielson, Julie. “Beating the Drum for Women's Rights.” Kirkus Reviews, Kirkus Media LLC., 2 April 2015, www.kirkusreviews.com/features/beating-drum-womens-rights/
Engle, Margarita. “Drum Dream Girl by Margarita Engle.” Poetry Foundation, Poetry Foundation, 2015, www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/141837/drum-dream-girl
Lopez, Rafael. “Hispanic Heritage. Millo Castro Zaldarriaga.” Rafael López, 29 Sept. 2017, rafaellopez.com/2017/09/29/hispanic-heritage-millo-castro-zaldarriaga/.
Reviewed by: Sophia Dubbelde ‘23
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