I met Oscar Fuentes a little over 1o years ago in a creative writing class at Miami Dade College led by teacher and poet Michael Hettich. Hettich, who has had a major influence on Miami’s literary scene, helped propel Fuentes into the author, filmmaker and multidisciplinary artist he is today. Oh, Fuentes is also the front man for his Latin jazz beat poetry fusion band, The Oscar Fuentes Combo.

This Saturday, June 21st at 7 p.m., Fuentes will read from his latest book, 4 Nights with Betsy, at Books & Books in Coral Gables. 4 Nights with Betsy is a quirky, hybrid collection of poetry, short stories and plays written during his residency at the Betsy Hotel. Fuentes quietly uses Miami as the silent muse and backdrop for his book. “Maybe things will be better in Wynwood…/Maybe things will be better in Chicago, who knows…,” Fuentes writes in his poem, “You Don’t Know Half our Story.” When I read Fuentes’ work, it’s as I’m a passenger driving through his creative process as he reveals his story. Join Fuentes at Books & Books Saturday, June 21st at 7 p.m. at 265 Aragon Ave.,Coral Gables.