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Letters to a Young Brown Girl
Barbara Jane Reyes answers the questions of Filipino American girls and young women of color with bold affirmations of hard-won empathy, fierce intelligence, and a fine-tuned B.S. detector.
The Brown Girl of these poems has is fed up with being shushed, with being constantly told how foreign and unattractive and unwanted she is. She’s flipping tables and throwing chairs. She’s raising her voice. She’s keeping a sharp focus on the violences committed in her everyday, and she’s writing through the depths of her “otherness” to find beauty and even grace amidst her rage. Simultaneously looking into the mirror and out into the world, Reyes exposes the sensitive nerve-endings of life under patriarchy as a visible immigrant woman of color as she reaches towards her center and the core values of her elders.
The Brown Girl of these poems has is fed up with being shushed, with being constantly told how foreign and unattractive and unwanted she is. She’s flipping tables and throwing chairs. She’s raising her voice. She’s keeping a sharp focus on the violences committed in her everyday, and she’s writing through the depths of her “otherness” to find beauty and even grace amidst her rage. Simultaneously looking into the mirror and out into the world, Reyes exposes the sensitive nerve-endings of life under patriarchy as a visible immigrant woman of color as she reaches towards her center and the core values of her elders.
72 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 22, 2020
16 people are currently reading
673 people want to read
About the author
Barbara Jane Reyes
21 books112 followersAuthor of Gravities of Center, Poeta en San Francisco, Diwata, To Love as Aswang, Invocation to Daughters, and Letters to a Young Brown Girl.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
November 21, 2020
Reyes’ unapologetic indignation fuels me every time. She freely expresses rage—and all of it is rightful and just. There are no false veneers here. She basically says, “Aren’t you tired? Aren’t you pissed? Yeah, me too.” And I love that. The language is both beautiful and raw—proving that those things can coexist.
September 12, 2020
This book is my auntie, the one I love to sit next to at family gatherings because everyone must greet her with respect and listen to her biting wisdom. If you are sitting next to her after our relatives continue on to the party, you can listen to her stories and backstories, and her biting wisdom becomes hard truth. It's a scary form of magic.
January 19, 2022
Barbara Jane Reyes is SUCH A BADASS. This book of poetry has become very dear to my heart throughout the month I took to read and reread her words. She moved me, spoke to me, and broke me with her poems. To all the brown girls out there, especially my Filipinx kin, please read and cherish this.
Where was this poetry when I was young?
This is for sure one of my favorite books of poetry I've ever read... If not my number one favorite. Thank you B.J.R., from my heart.
"There is always a brown girl who knows exactly how and when to open up the walls and disappear. We know this is easy as breathing on a cool day. We know how to pluck music from the air, and how to pluck away grays. We know how to call for ocean to rise, cold salt and tide, how to bury, and how to build fire. We know are that ocean. We know how to strip away sound, pulse, and subside. From barely a sigh, we can hold a pure note high. We know that to be a brown girl is to call the ocean is call to the self is to know you have to find a way."
Where was this poetry when I was young?
This is for sure one of my favorite books of poetry I've ever read... If not my number one favorite. Thank you B.J.R., from my heart.
"There is always a brown girl who knows exactly how and when to open up the walls and disappear. We know this is easy as breathing on a cool day. We know how to pluck music from the air, and how to pluck away grays. We know how to call for ocean to rise, cold salt and tide, how to bury, and how to build fire. We know are that ocean. We know how to strip away sound, pulse, and subside. From barely a sigh, we can hold a pure note high. We know that to be a brown girl is to call the ocean is call to the self is to know you have to find a way."
November 10, 2020
I love everything about this book - how it scares, challenges, elates, and ignites me...And frankly, I love that there is so much anger here. As someone who was taught to fear anger (both my own, and others') it is essential to learn how to hear it, feel it, honor it, and assert it. Can't heal anything if you don't feel everything first.
April 1, 2021
I needed this as a teenager.
I needed this now.
I will need this in the future.
I needed this now.
I will need this in the future.
November 15, 2020
Para sa babae. Para sa ‘yo. Para sa loób ng napakatagal ng nanahimik. Tama na. ‘Wag na.
Hija, you are seen. Now, make yourself heard.
Hija, you are seen. Now, make yourself heard.
May 15, 2022
This is a collection of affirmations for Filipina Americans in particular, though I think other Asian Americans may find that the words resonate with them. I loved the fierceness and “fuck you” vibe of these poems. These are poems for brown girls who demands more from the world, who is sick and tired of racism and patriarchy, and Reyes is going to be really loud about it.
The structure of these poems wasn’t anything particularly interesting, mostly because I wasn’t expecting these poems to be more like paragraphs than the ideas we normally have of poetry. As a result, I felt that it didn’t read too much like poetry, save the middle section that was an interesting “mixtape” of sorts (considering that they were named after various tracks). I liked the way Reyes played with language, though, especially the switching between Tagalog and English, which really reflects so many Asian Americans’ experiences in an immigrant household.
All things considered, this is a very approachable poetry collection with clear themes for the reader to grasp. And, most importantly, it is a moment to pause and listen to brown girls—specifically Filipina Americans—to have their say.
Some favorites: “Brown Girl Consumed,” “Brown Girl Manifesto: #allpinayeverything,” “Track: ‘A Girl in Trouble (Is a Temporary Thing),’ Romeo Void (1984).,” “Track: ‘Drop,’ Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions (2001).,” “Track: ‘Blood Moon,’ Low Leaf (2016).,” “Track: ‘Devoted,’ Julie Plug (2001).”
The structure of these poems wasn’t anything particularly interesting, mostly because I wasn’t expecting these poems to be more like paragraphs than the ideas we normally have of poetry. As a result, I felt that it didn’t read too much like poetry, save the middle section that was an interesting “mixtape” of sorts (considering that they were named after various tracks). I liked the way Reyes played with language, though, especially the switching between Tagalog and English, which really reflects so many Asian Americans’ experiences in an immigrant household.
All things considered, this is a very approachable poetry collection with clear themes for the reader to grasp. And, most importantly, it is a moment to pause and listen to brown girls—specifically Filipina Americans—to have their say.
Some favorites: “Brown Girl Consumed,” “Brown Girl Manifesto: #allpinayeverything,” “Track: ‘A Girl in Trouble (Is a Temporary Thing),’ Romeo Void (1984).,” “Track: ‘Drop,’ Hope Sandoval & the Warm Inventions (2001).,” “Track: ‘Blood Moon,’ Low Leaf (2016).,” “Track: ‘Devoted,’ Julie Plug (2001).”
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May 29, 2025brown girl rage. this was raw and vulnerable. left me in tears. wow.
January 9, 2021
This is poetry I read to uplift myself, to enrage myself, to see myself and I keep returning to this book ever so often just to pick up on the electric verses in this collection. Fantastic!
October 18, 2021
My Filipino heart is moved.
January 25, 2022
LETTERS TO A YOUNG BROWN GIRL by Barbara Jane Reyes contains poems that eloquently express rage against oppressive role/cultural expectations. Here are poems that amplify the strength and beauty of kayumanggi, disregarding the revered and romanticized Maria Clara image.
My favorite section of this collection is “Brown Girl Mixtape.” I made a playlist of the songs mentioned in this section and reread each poem while I listened, taking me deeper into my feelings, opening my mind more to revisit the past without getting stuck in it.
The letter/poem that reached out to me most said, “They will say, your language lacks finesse, your words low… They will say all of these things as they are stealing your language away from you. Until you cannot speak on your own behalf. Until you cannot speak at all. They will say you are simple, making inelegant noise...” This really brings me back to my first two years in the US, when assimilation to soften my tongue in English felt like a survival strategy. When I was choosing that or silence. I was so tired of being mocked, in a new place, because how I naturally talked sounded funny to so many people. So when I read the lines, “…My noise is inelegant, because I’m throwing f-bombs at you, motherfuckers. I don’t give a shit if you think it’s coarse.” My inner child is smiling-laughing knowing how many f-bombs we threw to resist forgetting how to speak Tagalog -maybe forgetting the slang- but maintaining the coarseness when I speak, the harshness in my tongue.
I highly recommend this to anyone who’s ever felt like the “other.” To all the maldita / suplada / mataray people, this one’s definitely for you. May you stay angas and proud.
(*all quoted text are excerpts from LETTERS TO A YOUNG BROWN GIRL by Barbara Jane Reyes)
My favorite section of this collection is “Brown Girl Mixtape.” I made a playlist of the songs mentioned in this section and reread each poem while I listened, taking me deeper into my feelings, opening my mind more to revisit the past without getting stuck in it.
The letter/poem that reached out to me most said, “They will say, your language lacks finesse, your words low… They will say all of these things as they are stealing your language away from you. Until you cannot speak on your own behalf. Until you cannot speak at all. They will say you are simple, making inelegant noise...” This really brings me back to my first two years in the US, when assimilation to soften my tongue in English felt like a survival strategy. When I was choosing that or silence. I was so tired of being mocked, in a new place, because how I naturally talked sounded funny to so many people. So when I read the lines, “…My noise is inelegant, because I’m throwing f-bombs at you, motherfuckers. I don’t give a shit if you think it’s coarse.” My inner child is smiling-laughing knowing how many f-bombs we threw to resist forgetting how to speak Tagalog -maybe forgetting the slang- but maintaining the coarseness when I speak, the harshness in my tongue.
I highly recommend this to anyone who’s ever felt like the “other.” To all the maldita / suplada / mataray people, this one’s definitely for you. May you stay angas and proud.
(*all quoted text are excerpts from LETTERS TO A YOUNG BROWN GIRL by Barbara Jane Reyes)
March 31, 2025
I think how you feel about this book directly correlates to your feelings about your identity as a Filipino person & the FilAm experience in adolescence (if you are Filipino). No denying that it’s powerful and I could definitely relate to a lot of things conveyed through this book, but there was so much anger, bitterness, and rage. Not trying to belittle these feelings but I guess I was looking more for something that portrayed the beauty of being a part of the Filipino culture, regardless of the racism & discrimination often faced, not in spite of it? Also I found the rhythm and prose somewhat lacking to be considered poetry. Diary of a Young Brown Girl would have been a more appropriate title for this.
November 16, 2020
Some of my favorite lines:
“That fabled Filipina hospitality, so much giving unto others until you are shoeless, penniless, mute, and hollowed out. Hija, you ain’t Jesus, multiplying fishes and loaves.”
“5. Some say it is bourgeois privilege for the battleground to be the page.
6. I think the page could be one weapon in our armories.”
“65. Let there be no shame in being imperfect.”
“That fabled Filipina hospitality, so much giving unto others until you are shoeless, penniless, mute, and hollowed out. Hija, you ain’t Jesus, multiplying fishes and loaves.”
“5. Some say it is bourgeois privilege for the battleground to be the page.
6. I think the page could be one weapon in our armories.”
“65. Let there be no shame in being imperfect.”
December 14, 2020
I have recently read “Letters to a Young Brown Girl'' by Barbra Jane Reyes. Her words and poems seem somewhat simple in terms of major themes. She talks about themes that have been spoken about before however, Reyes speakers so directly about all of these issues that it almost seems like thoughts.
For half of the book all of the poems were titled as “Brown Girl…” and following there would be an action or verb to describe the types of poems to come. Reyes writes in thought form. For example, in “Brown Girl Beginning” (Reyes 17) she puts each thought into sections, “Dalga,” “Bleed,” and “Tomboy.” While each of these sections does fall under the topic of a beginning she still makes a clear separation between them. And this is not the only poem in the book that follows this method. I thought that this style of poem was very interesting because not only did it feel like thoughts written out on paper, it also felt like each paragraph was a note that she wrote and compiled each note into groupings.
“Beed” was probably my favorite section of all of her poems. Throughout the poem she was growing up, but as she aged the things that people told her that she needed to be doing continued to get more subjective. Reyes wrote, “When I was eight, they told me to stay in the shade” later followed by “when I was ten I learned to flip my hair, and roll up my skirt at the waist” (17). I liked this poem because it is the simpler actions that can get girls in trouble. Like rolling up a skirt is used in two ways it can be because the waistband is a little loose, or it is to shorten the skirt to show off more leg. And while neither option is bad, it is actions like this that girls learn at a young age that makes us objectified. And in some cases these simple actions that we have been doing since we were young is what people will tell us makes us “sluts” or that we are “asking for it.” Reyes did not have to say any of those harsher words and tones for the reader to understand what those simple actions mean in this world.
While the first section of the book all of the titles include “Brown Girl” the following sections of the book all of the titles begin with “Track: ...” And the trach poems in my mind are slightly more poetic. For example in a poem titled “Track: ‘Blood Moon’ Low Leaf (2016)” there isn't as much of Reyes making small gestures at larger issues in the world. She simply talks about the world with romanticised words. Reyes writes “all I have entered into moonlight, calling to fill you, tangling you earthbound, my many branches transcribing dark rooting of lungs bellowing” (38). There is not a single period in this poem and the magical illusions to the moon never end. And perhaps others read this poem and see something more/different than I do but when I read it I don’t see a deeper meaning I just see myself entering that moonlight and getting lost in the beautiful imagery of it all.
The final section of the book every poem is titled exactly the same with no additional words. Each poem is titled “Dear Brown Girl.” And these poems seem to be more personal than the others, I feel as though Reyes is trying to get all of her life lessons through to the Brown Girl receiving these messages. And I know as a white female that these messages are not meant for me however, it is so interesting to read about the struggles as a person that I can relate to and those of facing forms of racism that I cannot connect to. But not only is it personalized for the receiving Brown Girl it seems as though Reyes is talking to a younger version of herself by all of the specifics that she writes in these letters. Many times she speaks of her sister and the things that you can find in her room. One line from this grouping of poems that stuck with me was when Reyes wrote, “what if I told you, you don’t have to do as you’re told” (58). I cannot tell you what about it really made me think but after reading that line I wanted to know how, and in what situation did she know that doing what you are told is not always the right thing to do.
“Letters to a Young Brown Girl” takes you through three different journeys and with each one you learn something. And perhaps this book isn't for everyone, and certain poems weren’t for me but the book as a whole is rather inspiring. I will definitely be reading this again in my future.
For half of the book all of the poems were titled as “Brown Girl…” and following there would be an action or verb to describe the types of poems to come. Reyes writes in thought form. For example, in “Brown Girl Beginning” (Reyes 17) she puts each thought into sections, “Dalga,” “Bleed,” and “Tomboy.” While each of these sections does fall under the topic of a beginning she still makes a clear separation between them. And this is not the only poem in the book that follows this method. I thought that this style of poem was very interesting because not only did it feel like thoughts written out on paper, it also felt like each paragraph was a note that she wrote and compiled each note into groupings.
“Beed” was probably my favorite section of all of her poems. Throughout the poem she was growing up, but as she aged the things that people told her that she needed to be doing continued to get more subjective. Reyes wrote, “When I was eight, they told me to stay in the shade” later followed by “when I was ten I learned to flip my hair, and roll up my skirt at the waist” (17). I liked this poem because it is the simpler actions that can get girls in trouble. Like rolling up a skirt is used in two ways it can be because the waistband is a little loose, or it is to shorten the skirt to show off more leg. And while neither option is bad, it is actions like this that girls learn at a young age that makes us objectified. And in some cases these simple actions that we have been doing since we were young is what people will tell us makes us “sluts” or that we are “asking for it.” Reyes did not have to say any of those harsher words and tones for the reader to understand what those simple actions mean in this world.
While the first section of the book all of the titles include “Brown Girl” the following sections of the book all of the titles begin with “Track: ...” And the trach poems in my mind are slightly more poetic. For example in a poem titled “Track: ‘Blood Moon’ Low Leaf (2016)” there isn't as much of Reyes making small gestures at larger issues in the world. She simply talks about the world with romanticised words. Reyes writes “all I have entered into moonlight, calling to fill you, tangling you earthbound, my many branches transcribing dark rooting of lungs bellowing” (38). There is not a single period in this poem and the magical illusions to the moon never end. And perhaps others read this poem and see something more/different than I do but when I read it I don’t see a deeper meaning I just see myself entering that moonlight and getting lost in the beautiful imagery of it all.
The final section of the book every poem is titled exactly the same with no additional words. Each poem is titled “Dear Brown Girl.” And these poems seem to be more personal than the others, I feel as though Reyes is trying to get all of her life lessons through to the Brown Girl receiving these messages. And I know as a white female that these messages are not meant for me however, it is so interesting to read about the struggles as a person that I can relate to and those of facing forms of racism that I cannot connect to. But not only is it personalized for the receiving Brown Girl it seems as though Reyes is talking to a younger version of herself by all of the specifics that she writes in these letters. Many times she speaks of her sister and the things that you can find in her room. One line from this grouping of poems that stuck with me was when Reyes wrote, “what if I told you, you don’t have to do as you’re told” (58). I cannot tell you what about it really made me think but after reading that line I wanted to know how, and in what situation did she know that doing what you are told is not always the right thing to do.
“Letters to a Young Brown Girl” takes you through three different journeys and with each one you learn something. And perhaps this book isn't for everyone, and certain poems weren’t for me but the book as a whole is rather inspiring. I will definitely be reading this again in my future.
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October 1, 2021POWERFUL, I'm shook.
I read the ebook but must purchase for my personal library to amp/arm myself up in times where I second guess myself. I'm really happy I came across this book to start Filipinx History Month, I am going to recommend it to every Filipina I know. I enjoyed listening to the playlist while thinking about the poems.
(The elders are polishing pebble and pearl amulets for you.)(The elders want to know when will start singing lovesongs again.)(The elders are praying the rosary for you.)(The elders want to know when they may lead you back to water.)
"There is always a brown girl who knows exactly how and when to open up the walls and disappear. We know this is easy as breathing on a cool day. We know how to pluck music from the air, and how to pluck away grays. We know how to call for the ocean to rise, cold salt and tide, how to bury, and how to build fire. We know that we are the ocean. We know how to strip away sound, pulse, and subside. From barely a sign, we can hold a pure note high. We know that to be a brown girl is to call the ocean is call to the self is to know you have to find a way"
I read the ebook but must purchase for my personal library to amp/arm myself up in times where I second guess myself. I'm really happy I came across this book to start Filipinx History Month, I am going to recommend it to every Filipina I know. I enjoyed listening to the playlist while thinking about the poems.
(The elders are polishing pebble and pearl amulets for you.)(The elders want to know when will start singing lovesongs again.)(The elders are praying the rosary for you.)(The elders want to know when they may lead you back to water.)
"There is always a brown girl who knows exactly how and when to open up the walls and disappear. We know this is easy as breathing on a cool day. We know how to pluck music from the air, and how to pluck away grays. We know how to call for the ocean to rise, cold salt and tide, how to bury, and how to build fire. We know that we are the ocean. We know how to strip away sound, pulse, and subside. From barely a sign, we can hold a pure note high. We know that to be a brown girl is to call the ocean is call to the self is to know you have to find a way"
September 5, 2022
Powerful and passionate, if one-notey, poetry about anti-Filipino racism and misogyny. The repetitiveness of these poems somewhat blunts their impact. I get that young Filipino women are often seen as sex objects by white men. There is no need to make the point a dozen-odd times.
On a more positive note, the love that Reyes has for her native culture comes through very strongly in the poems. What she does not mention is that she grew up and has spent all of her adult life living in the San Francisco bay area.
Some references to what it was like coming of age during the AIDS pandemic in San Francisco would have been welcome.
One, final. mild criticism. Some of the "poems" herein were clearly just journal entries strung together without any attempt at crafting a work with structure or even coherence. This is an unfortunate trend I see in a lot of contemporary verse, ie. Amanda Lovelace.
Still, Letters To a Young Brow Girl is definitely worth reading for its viewpoint in spite of its flaws.
On a more positive note, the love that Reyes has for her native culture comes through very strongly in the poems. What she does not mention is that she grew up and has spent all of her adult life living in the San Francisco bay area.
Some references to what it was like coming of age during the AIDS pandemic in San Francisco would have been welcome.
One, final. mild criticism. Some of the "poems" herein were clearly just journal entries strung together without any attempt at crafting a work with structure or even coherence. This is an unfortunate trend I see in a lot of contemporary verse, ie. Amanda Lovelace.
Still, Letters To a Young Brow Girl is definitely worth reading for its viewpoint in spite of its flaws.
August 17, 2025
A collection of poems about being Filipino, identity, racism, family, and survival.
from Brown Girl Ghost: "A ghost is a dissolving self posting her millionth bathroom mirror selfie so that she will not dissolve. She is soft-focused, she is airbrushed, she is mood-lit. She is over-exposed and whitened. Her eyelashes extend beyond reason. Her hair is tousled, her pupils dilated for you. She lingers, hoping you will see her. She is all angles, ribcage, wide eyes, duck pout. She sucks in her cheekbones. She holds her breath. She pushes out her chest. Because she is thirsty. Because everyone is her daddy. You don't want to blame her. You blame her. You feel sorry for her. You want to punish her for teasing. You want to exorcise her. You want your saliva on her. You want her on your tongue. You click 'like,' and 'share.'"
from Brown Girl Hustle: "You cannot airbrush me. There is no need. You cannot translate me. I command your tongue. I thwack your knuckles with my curling iron, when you do not step back. I sing karaoke, loud, and off key. No, you really cannot quiet me."
from Brown Girl Ghost: "A ghost is a dissolving self posting her millionth bathroom mirror selfie so that she will not dissolve. She is soft-focused, she is airbrushed, she is mood-lit. She is over-exposed and whitened. Her eyelashes extend beyond reason. Her hair is tousled, her pupils dilated for you. She lingers, hoping you will see her. She is all angles, ribcage, wide eyes, duck pout. She sucks in her cheekbones. She holds her breath. She pushes out her chest. Because she is thirsty. Because everyone is her daddy. You don't want to blame her. You blame her. You feel sorry for her. You want to punish her for teasing. You want to exorcise her. You want your saliva on her. You want her on your tongue. You click 'like,' and 'share.'"
from Brown Girl Hustle: "You cannot airbrush me. There is no need. You cannot translate me. I command your tongue. I thwack your knuckles with my curling iron, when you do not step back. I sing karaoke, loud, and off key. No, you really cannot quiet me."
December 5, 2022
I read through this book in one sitting and will likely go back and reread parts of it again. To describe Letters to a Young Brown Girl in a few words: powerful, beautiful, original, and real.
Adding to my list of Filipino American authors, Babara Jane Reyes easily goes to the top. Her writing is one that I wish I knew about years ago (alas, never too late).
One of my favorite chapters was "Brown Girl Mixtape." Track: "Orange Moon, Eryka Badu (2000)"
"...How we hum honey, open the lungs, the throat, and our song a
chorus of praise and day. We glimmer so bright.
How good it is, to be so bright, to pay no mind to those who
don't abide, so many who would dull our shine."
Adding to my list of Filipino American authors, Babara Jane Reyes easily goes to the top. Her writing is one that I wish I knew about years ago (alas, never too late).
One of my favorite chapters was "Brown Girl Mixtape." Track: "Orange Moon, Eryka Badu (2000)"
"...How we hum honey, open the lungs, the throat, and our song a
chorus of praise and day. We glimmer so bright.
How good it is, to be so bright, to pay no mind to those who
don't abide, so many who would dull our shine."
March 20, 2025
My professor wrote this and wow!!! this was such a beautiful piece of art that encapsulated all the troubling thoughts of many Filipino-American immigrants or first generation. It showed the problems that reside in their own thoughts, but also the problems that arise from other people who don’t understand Filipino culture or don’t try to. Yet, at the end, it was the authors letter to herself and to any other Filipino girl saying the importance of remaining close to your roots. The problems one may have are problems that need to be talked about. and… big takeaway is: so what if they don’t get u!!!!!!! ur roots make u who u are and being filipino is a great asset that our own kapwa sometimes fail to help us remember that
October 17, 2023
It feels like everytime you read a book that is so profound, relatable and just.. amazing, that words escape u. I wish i could mentally pull out a dictionary, pepper this review with pretty words and something beautiful to truly express how much this book meant to me-- but words are failing me.
I loved this book. So much. I wish I had read it when i was a young teenager, and I know i'll come back to it frequently throughout my life. I 100% will read every single piece of work Barbara has. As a filipino whos reconnecting w his roots, this book meant alot to me.
I loved this book. So much. I wish I had read it when i was a young teenager, and I know i'll come back to it frequently throughout my life. I 100% will read every single piece of work Barbara has. As a filipino whos reconnecting w his roots, this book meant alot to me.
February 5, 2024
Thus begins my infatuation with poetry.
I want to write poetry, and who better to learn from than a Bay Area grown Filipina fucking WORDSMITH. I cannot explain how important her words are becoming to me…all I know is she blends identity with music and power and despair and hope in a way that helps me understand myself better. Probably helps that I’m familiar with her references, like Filipino dishes and Ruby Ibarra, but her language is also deeply powerful without the personal cultural connection.
I want to write poetry, and who better to learn from than a Bay Area grown Filipina fucking WORDSMITH. I cannot explain how important her words are becoming to me…all I know is she blends identity with music and power and despair and hope in a way that helps me understand myself better. Probably helps that I’m familiar with her references, like Filipino dishes and Ruby Ibarra, but her language is also deeply powerful without the personal cultural connection.
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November 16, 2020With a loud, wondrous voice, this unflinching poetry collection pulsates with anger that mirrors many a young brown girl's, directed towards the whites and privileged folk who contribute to the harmful aggressions that attempt to chip away at a brown girl's worth. Written in multiple languages, this collection speaks truths that are written for the attentive (and possibly also angry) Filipino audience first and foremost.
May 9, 2021
I don't like it. I am half Filipina and half Chinese and have read so many beautiful books that show women empowerment by Filipinx authors. However, most of the poems here feel abrupt and condescending. I think it wants to show feminism, yet the 'fierce intelligence' vibe this book brags about seems rather accusatory. 'Hija...' a line begins. For me, the voice is not of a wise woman who bestows payo to an hija. The voice sounds rather bitter.
November 1, 2021
This was a really powerful read! I liked it a lot. It was brutally honest, in a way that I think people need to hear. I did find the second part (of 3) to be less accessible, but I think it's because I was not familiar with the music being referenced (I loved the concept of that section though). That's on me though, not a flaw with the poetry. Overall, pretty impressive. Recommend.
December 16, 2021
It's a short but powerful collection of contradictions- being seen (for being different) and being invisible (for being different), being included (for being the token other) and being excluded (for being too much of the other)- that's sadly too familiar. It's also being fed up with how the system is rigged and deciding to not play by the unfair rules. It's about finding your voice and learning to love yourself.
August 3, 2021
📚📚📚📚1/2
September 16, 2021
I really enjoy feeling so understood. From a Filipina who grew up in the Bay and born in the Philippines, all of it felt so relatable.
May 31, 2022
so beautifully written, aching, vibrant, somber, and lovely
September 17, 2022
Profound, beautiful, lyrical, moving poetry in this collection. A wide range of style and voice. Striking and poignant and important. Highly recommend!
May 20, 2023
As a brown girl, I sought affirmation & I found it.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews