Blanco, Richard. How to Love a Country: Poems. Boston: Beacon Press, 2019.
I was browsing the poetry section at my local Barnes & Noble today (perhaps surprisingly, they had a rather impressive selection of new stuff along with the “classics”) and came across Blanco’s new collection. I read a few poems and enjoyed them, so decided to buy it. I’ve never read any of his poetry before even though I teach his memoir in one of my writing classes.
Irby, Samantha. Meaty: Essays. New York: Vintage Books, 2018.
This is a revised edition of Irby’s first book, which I also found while browsing at B&N. I love Irby’s second book, We Are Never Meeting in Real Life, so buying this one was an easy choice.
Negrón-Muntaner, Frances. Boricua Pop: Puerto Ricans and the Latinization of American Culture. New York: New York University Press, 2004.
This book is somewhat old, but sadly not that much has been written about Puerto Rican work in the arts since then, so I feel that it is necessary to read it because part of my current project includes a discussion of Puerto Rican literature.