The Things We Bring with Us: Travel Poems

by S.G. Huerta

Sassy, witty, and expectedly peregrine, these panoramic poems are sharp and personal. They seem to arise from above, even higher than where pigeons choose to dismantle their bowel movements. Well-researched and deftly written, these tightly controlled, prudent, perceptive, and expedient poems are capable of turning your inflamed heart into snow or a Renaissance painting or a Catholic Church.
— Vi Khi Nao, judge of the Charlotte Mew Prize

The Things We Bring With Us: Travel Poems is simply stunning. The poems span the world and confront the baggage we carry and also the baggage burdened on us by others’ narrow definitions of self. Huerta’s razor-eyed insights combined with their precise language make for a dazzling debut.
— Charlotte Pence, author of Code

The poems in this chapbook debut tell stories I want to listen to. S.G. deftly writes of loneliness and feeling in-between, of traveling and searching for something in far-away places. It’s a collection about being pulled in different directions, about finding oneself in traveling, but also in the places traveled-from. S.G. contemplates what they are drawn to and drawn from, carefully questioning the symmetry between the places they know well and the cities where they feel like a stranger. These powerful poems are queer and quiet, but ring loud with language, family, love, and eager movement through an unfamiliar world.
— Sara Ryan, author of I Thought There Would Be More Wolves

46 pages, Paperback

Published January 13, 2021

About the author

S.G. Huerta is a Chicana poet from Dallas. They live in Texas with their cat Lorca.

Reviews

[S.G. Huerta]

Check out my debut chapbook!

[Hailey]

I am so biased because I love S.G. so much. But reading this book of poems was like hearing their voice in my ear, like being beside them in every location they visited. In every poem, I felt like I was feeling everything alongside them. Their poetry has made my brain better, in a small, loud way.

[David Gleicher]

By far the best poetry book I have ever read.

[K Grenadier]

Rich, poignant, and mesmerizing. S.G. paints with their poetry about the rich and sometimes heartbreaking complexities of life, place, and finding ourselves. I too may be biased, as I know S.G., but after reading their book I feel I know them even better. This book is a gift, given to us readers who love poetry, travel, and art.

[Mandy Gleicher]

I laughed, I cried: what a read! These poems have so much voice and heart, even when that heart is broken. So, so proud.

[Shareen Murayama]

My all time favorite poem from this collection to #teachlivingpoets is "Plaza de España” which is pg-13, opens with pop-culture reference to Star Wars as filming location and delves into existential wondering, family, and customs.

[Jeni]

Wonderful! Reminiscent of A house on Mango Street!