Junkyard Dogs: Poems

by Damien Flores

Overview

Junkyard Dogs is the debut poetry collection by National Poetry Slam champion Damien Flores. His poems evoke the Old Town Albuquerque of his youth, growing up in a large, complicated Catholic family, and his relationships with his family and the city of his upbringing.

With appearances from Juana Henrieta and Manuel Leyba, Tony Mares, Freddy Fender, and Johnny Tapia, Flores pays homage to the people and places of the Duke City.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780997035322
Publisher:	West End Press
Publication date:	12/01/2016
Pages:	108
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.80(h) x 0.30(d)

Table of Contents

Midnight in Saint Mary's 1

El Cuento de Juana Henrieta 3

The Wedding Danes 7

Lament for a Bull 12

A Warning for Driving the Wrong Way 13

Angel the Junkyard Dog Escapes 16

The Heights 19

Club 27 22

Ruins of Tiguex 25

En la Calle Independencia 27

La Ruca vs. The Realtor 28

Llano Stew 29

For Uncle Jim 31

Grandma's Favorite Saint 34

Saint Michael Condemns the Bigot to Purgatory 36

The Boxers of Los Luceros Road 40

A Dollar Three-Eighty 42

La Llorona Returns 46

Cuete 49

The Smallest Rose 50

Manuel Leyba Speaks to the Bulldozer 55

Homegirl Archetype 65

Angel of the Rivers and the Flowers 68

Snowfall in Burque 70

On Ash Wednesday 71

Storyteller 75

Una Plática I Did and Did Not Have with Tony Mares 79

Ode to Freddy Fender 82

El Soldado Razo 86

Elegy for Johnny Tápia 91

February 17th 95

Editorial Reviews

"Damien Flores is a griot of his comunidad chronicling lives worth 'nothing and everything.' He sings songs of saints, whispers prayers of barrio boxers, chants testemonios of junkyard dogs, recites raza histories real and imagined, and dances with ghosts, claiming space for them among the living. Like John Henry reincarnated as Juana Henrieta, Flores's characters are defiant homes on gentrified blocks battling for survival. These cuentos, 'smooth as a new Cadillac,' are crafted with rhythm, soul, and honesty. But above all, they are written with love from the heart of a powerful storyteller. Junkyard Dogs excavates proud bones that refuse to remain buried."—Amalia Ortiz, HBO Def Poet and author of Rant. Chant. Chisme

"Through the voices of 'our breathing ancestors,' Flores brings to life generations of nuevomexicanos and Chicanos that have shaped the Burque landscape. His poetry reminds us that this space if filled with the hearts and souls of those who have come before us and continue to inspire us through storytelling. His poetry echoes life lessons of love and loss, heroic deeds, and the everyday triumphs of those we hold in high esteem and those that often are forgotten."—Dr. Vanessa Fonseca, Asst. Professor of English, Arizona State University

From the Publisher