Poetry. Asian American Studies. POETA EN SAN FRANCISCO is the winner of the highly prestigious James Laughlin Award for 2005, awarded annually from the Academy of American Poetry and the only prize for a second book of poetry in the United States. Although Reyes' first book was not as widely known as the first book of many of the other eligible poets, the judges nevertheless courageously chose this risky, radical, and deserving second book put out by an energetic but very small publisher. Reyes received her undergraduate education at UC Berkeley, where she also served as Editor-in-Chief of the Filipino American literary publication Maganda. Her work has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her first book, Gravities of Center, was published by Arkipelago Books (SF) in 2003.
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About the Author
Barbara Jane Reyes was born in Manila, Philippines, and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. She received her BA in Ethnic Studies at UC Berkeley and her MFA at San Francisco State University. She is the author of Gravities of Center (Arkipelago Books, 2003) and Poeta en San Francisco (Tinfish Press, 2005), which received the James Laughlin Award of the Academy of American Poets. Her third book, entitled Diwata, is forthcoming from BOA Editions, Ltd. in 2010. Her chapbooks, Easter Sunday (2008), Cherry (2008), and West Oakland Sutra for the AK-47 Shooter at 3:00 AM and other Oakland poems (2008) are published by Ypolita Press, Portable Press at Yo-Yo Labs, and Deep Oakland Editions, respectively. Her poetry, essays, and reviews have appeared in Latino Poetry Review, New American Writing, North American Review, Notre Dame Review, XCP: Cross Cultural Poetics, among others. She has taught Creative Writing at Mills College, and Philippine Studies at University of San Francisco. She lives with her husband, poet Oscar Bermeo, in Oakland.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Often complex, interesting poetry,
By Ravi C. (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Poeta En San Francisco (Paperback)
While I know of the author in San Francisco Asian American Arts circles, I didn't get to reading her book until HYPHEN Magazine recommended it in their Winter 2011 issue. They quote part of her opening poem "What may be so edgy about this state of emergency/is my lack of apology for what I am bound to do."Reading this book on 11/11/11, Veterans' Day, has a particular significance, as the book's theme is generally an exploration and indictment of American imperialism, colonialism, racism and sexism. The feeling tone I got from the work was one of extreme discontent and anger; nearly every poem has an "adulterated" core, a sense of boundaries violated. It is a scornful, lamenting book, a good reminder of the shadow of power. Not everything here worked for me, though I dog-eared several pages to return to later. Some of the poems seem litanies, or inventories, of words that didn't resonate. Since I'm more "versed" in the spoken word tradition, some of the poems didn't carry the verve I might want in such political poetry. Still, it was very good "written" word. The book definitely got better for me after the first 1/3rd or so, particluarly after the poems about the "pilipinas", which read as cynical sales pitches for colonization/imperialism: "in short, the pilipinas are custom tailored to fit your diverse needs." A good reminder that those needs are unfortunately met in the way of the world. Perhaps I am looking for a hint of the other needs that the poet wishes would be met; in other words, this is a dark and binding work. Somewhere, though, there is light - I guess I wanted that, too. It's something I'm working with - the intense and justifiable feeling of anger at injustice, yet also the need for hope. We all need to work this out - but we do need to confront the dark side, as Reyes ably does. I would also recommend Bao Phi's Song I SingSong I Sing as an excellent example of spoken word poetry which makes race and racism the central theme, or Yuri Kageyama's The New and Selected Yuri: Writing From Peeling till Now, which shows her powerful voice on race and gender issues. My own book, a fox peeks out: poems has some poems from the slam scene, but is more diverse thematically. (Just published, excuse the shameless plug!)
5.0 out of 5 stars
Poeta en San Francisco Review,
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This review is from: Poeta En San Francisco (Paperback)
Reyes is able to take a look at the American culture surrounding war from an outsider's point of view. She takes on several different voices throughout the work, from a white American male to an Asian woman, yet through use of irony each speaks from her own perspective. The ideas that she shares are powerful, and leave the reader pondering issues of racism and war. If you like poems that make you question your own culture, then this a good read.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Poeta En Excellance,
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This review is from: Poeta En San Francisco (Paperback)
This book overwhelmed me with its beauty and tremulous dance between worlds. Althouough I can only read English with any real understanding, I delighted in the texture and aesthetic richness of the untranslated bits contained herein. This immediately became an important book to myself as a poet. One of the best collections of recent years. I look forward eagerly to Reyes' future work.
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