Promises of Gold

"How many bad lovers have gotten poems? How many crushes? No disrespect to romantic love--but what about our friends ? Those homies who are there all along--cheering for us and reminding us that love is abundant."

In this groundbreaking collection of poems, José Olivarez explores every kind of love--self, brotherly, romantic, familial, cultural. Grappling with the contradictions of the American Dream with unflinching humanity, he lays bare the ways in which "love is complicated by forces larger than our hearts."

Whether readers enter this collection in English or via the Spanish translation by poet David Ruano, these extraordinary poems are sure to become beloved for their illuminations of life--and love.

" Cuántas malas parejas han inspirado poemas? Cuántos crush es? Sin faltarle el respeto al amor romántico--pero qué hay de los amigos? Esos compas que están ahí todo el tiempo--animándonos y recordándonos que elamor es abundante".

En esta innovadora colección de poemas, José Olivarez explora cada tipo de amor--el propio, fraternal, romántico, familiar, cultural. Lidiando con las contradicciones del sueño americano, con una humanidad inquebrantable, deja al descubierto las maneras en que "el amor se va complicando por fuerzas más grandes que nuestros corazones".

Ya sea que los lectores entren a esta colección en inglés o a partir de la traducción al español del poeta David Ruano, estos extraordinarios poemas serán amados seguramente por sus iluminaciones sobre el amor y la vida.

Author: José Olivarez
Publisher: Henry Holt & Company
Published: 02/14/2023
Pages: 320
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.80lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.50w x 1.40d
ISBN: 9781250878496
Award: National Book Awards - Nominee

Review Citation(s):
Publishers Weekly 12/19/2022
Booklist 02/01/2023 pg. 7
Shelf Awareness 04/21/2023

About the Author
José Olivarez is the son of Mexican immigrants. His debut book of poems, Citizen Illegal, was a finalist for the PEN/Jean Stein Award and a winner of the 2018 Chicago Review of Books Poetry Prize. It was named a top book of 2018 by the Adroit Journal, NPR, and the New York Public Library. Along with Felicia Chavez and Willie Perdomo, he coedited the poetry anthology The BreakBeat Poets Vol. 4: LatiNext. He cohosts the poetry podcast The Poetry Gods.