Now Available: AMERARCANA 2010 February 11, 2010: Hi all, I wanted to share news about Amerarcana, a new publication coming out of San Francisco -- Bird & Beckett Books and Records, to be exact. Editor Nicholas James Whittington, who helps run the family owned indie bookstore, told me about Amerarcana last year; many of the poets from whom he'd solicited work were poets I recently saw [...] by Barbara Jane Reyes

So long and thanks for all the fish + a question about translation November 16, 2009: Dear readers of this here Harriet blog, Well, looks like my time here has come to a close. It's been interesting watching you all anonymously thumbs up and thumbs down one another. In all seriousness, thank you for reading my posts, and allowing me to introduce you all to some poets, poetry, and indie presses which may not have otherwise [...] by Barbara Jane Reyes

Indie Publishing: Two Questions, Many More Answers November 6, 2009: Many thanks to Brent E. Beltrán and Consuelo Manríquez de Beltrán of Calaca Press, Patrick Durgin of Kenning Editions, and Willie Perdomo of Cypher Books for their responses to my indie publishing questions. I know my current series of posts (#1 | #2) on indie publishing isn't garnering heaps of Harriet comments, which is fine, because I do [...] by Barbara Jane Reyes

Indie Publishing: Two Questions and More Answers October 31, 2009: Regarding my previous post on indie publishing, Glen has commented, "In some ways I feel like there’s too much poetry being published right now and not enough filtering, so it’s interesting to hear from people who feel the opposite." To this, I've responded that his question "leads to the question of filtering, the criteria for filtering, and [...] by Barbara Jane Reyes

Indie Publishing: Two Questions and Several Answers October 27, 2009: Thank you to Eileen Tabios, Francisco Aragón, Reb Livingston, and Rusty Morrison, for answering a couple of very broad questions regarding indie publishing for me. Below are their responses. Question: Why did you start your small press/why did you become an independent publisher? What need was not being met by the existing [...] by Barbara Jane Reyes

Rachel McKibbens, ‘Pink Elephant’ (Cypher Books, 2009) October 20, 2009: Rachel McKibbens's lovely and serrated debut collection, Pink Elephant (Cypher Books), reminds us why poetry as testimony is so necessary. Ex-punk rock chola and mother of five, 2009 Women’s Individual World Poetry Slam champion Rachel McKibbens writes about abandonment and abuse in stark, startling language and well-wrought fable, delivered [...] by Barbara Jane Reyes

Tony Robles, ‘Filipino Building Maintenance Company’ (Poor Press Publications, 2009) October 10, 2009: Last weekend, I participated in a spectacle of a Filipino American History event at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, where, for the entire day, admission was free courtesy of Target Stores. Interesting, this corporate support of an otherwise invisible but ubiquitous population and our obscure commemorative month. In the noisy museum lobby, a [...] by Barbara Jane Reyes

Tara Betts, ‘Arc & Hue’ (Willow Books, 2009) October 8, 2009: [Hi all, I have invited the super prolific poet and reviewer Craig Santos Perez to guest post here. Below is his review of Tara Betts's just released first collection of poems, Arc & Hue.] Arc & Hue (Willow Books, 2009) by Tara Betts 90 pp. $15, paper. ISBN: 978-0-9819208-7-0. review by Craig Santos Perez The title poem of Tara [...] by Barbara Jane Reyes

Adrian Castro, ‘Handling Destiny’ (Coffee House Press, 2009) October 2, 2009: [caption id="attachment_5518" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="Photo by Pedro Portal"][/caption] Adrian Castro's latest collection, Handling Destiny (Coffee House, 2009), includes the poem, "Itutu Sankófa 2003," written for the memory of the Afro-Cuban jazz percussionist Ramon "Mongo" Santamaria. In this poem, Castro writes, "You keep [...] by Barbara Jane Reyes

A few things about R. Zamora Linmark’s ‘The Evolution of a Sigh’ September 28, 2009: [R. Zamora Linmark: Photographed by Roger Erickson in Los Angeles. From Out Magazine.] I wanted to say a few things about R. Zamora Linmark's energetic collection The Evolution of a Sigh (Hanging Loose Press, 2008) which I've read and reread, and which had me cracking up at some of what I enjoy best in Linmark's work; he mines and dredges [...] by Barbara Jane Reyes