Glistening. . . . Olivarez elevates small but notable moments through a sensitive, introspective speaker who must learn tough lessons on the streets of Calumet City. . . Bilingual readers will enjoy flipping back and forth to see how the prism of each poem changes its hue in the light of another language.”
—Booklist starred review
“This book reads like an ode to people of color who are handed a broom, assumed to be the help, when in reality we are equal. He’s rewriting the history of colonization and challenging us to unlearn its impacts one poem at a time.”
—Chicago Reader
"Promises of Gold is a uniquely bilingual celebration of life and the mundane. . . . While inspired by Olivarez's distinctly second-generation Mexican immigrant experiences, Promises of Gold expresses themes of hope, dreams, family, and friendship that can apply to anyone, regardless of their background."
—The Harvard Crimson
“Out of Calumet City, weighing in at around 160 plus Promises of Gold, in both English and Spanish, the one that’s poly with his tortillas, the masterfully playful, the uniquely imaginative, the one that bets everything he has on his people, the one, the only, José Olivarez is the undisputed Mexican champ. The cypher that straddles between dólares and dolores, this quintessential second collection has put Olivarez at the forefront of not only first-generation poetics, but of all poetry. This one here is for us—the ones who hide garden shears in their poems.”
—Javier Zamora, author of the New York Times bestselling memoir Solito
“The truth is: Technically, I don’t understand poetry. I never have. I miss everything in it. It’s a language I can’t process. And, for me anyway, that’s what makes Jose special. Because when he writes poetry, I don’t need to understand it—at least, not in the traditional sense—because I FEEL it. I feel his words under my fingertips like velvet. I feel his words in my chest like I’m looking at a painting that moves me in a way I can’t fully explain. And, again, for me anyway, that’s more important.”
—Shea Serrano, bestselling author of Hip Hop (And Other Things)
“Visceral and moving.”
—Kate Baer, #1 New York Times Bestselling author of What Kind of Woman
““My people I am poly with the tortillas” might be my favorite single sentence I have ever read in a poem. Get the book for that line alone. Promises of Gold is a heartfelt and hilarious series of odes to the large and small joys of life. It is also a battle rap and a clapback to all the death-making institutions we live under at every level. I could call this book soft and I would only be telling a half-truth. This is a collection that delights in the softness of every kind of love from familial to homie to culinary to romantic. But this is also a book that is hard on colonizers, and cruel billionaires, and capitalist exploitation. This book shines bright as the gold that got us into all this colonial mess.”
—Nate Marshall, author of Finna
“This book pushes us to think beyond love as we’ve known it, as the overly romantic, always lighthearted love that’s been sold to us for generations. Instead, it shows us a map into loving at the end of the world, in isolation, in fear, when our backs are cornered to the wall. And still then, Olivarez chooses to love, to hope, to dream. This book is a necessary dream, one that is a gift to the world.”
—Fatimah Asghar, author of When We Were Sisters
“The best part about reading Olivarez’s work is that his language is cordial toward the reader. He is one of the few poets who uses accessible language, and everyone regardless of educational background can enjoy his poems."
—NewCity Lit
“Details grounded in the everyday world capture great fulfillment. . . . The poet’s sensitive and insightful voice allows these stirring poems to successfully explore the forces acting on love in a complex world, and the unshakable promise of understanding and belonging.”
—Publishers Weekly starred review
"Olivarez primarily explores the presence and absence of love in Chicano and Mexican communities, creating sparkling, nostalgic portraits of family and friends. . . . He is able to pierce the culture, arriving straight at its heart."
—BookPage starred review
★ 12/19/2022
In this moving second collection, Olivarez (Citizen Illegal) reflects on his Mexican identity through poems that explore platonic and romantic love, the joys of friendship and food, and the pain and loss at the heart of capitalist society. A “child of loss,” Olivarez still believes in a salvation made possible by relationships and feeling, a world where “my friends show up unannounced & always welcome.” Details grounded in the everyday world capture great fulfillment, such as “Hershey’s Kisses,” “hot Cheetos,” “ramen noodle days,” and tortillas “warmed on a comal.” “aybe we could redefine kin,” Olivarez proposes, and these poems make a strong case for that redefinition, revealing how close bonds are an antidote to the world’s hardships. In one poem, the speaker details how their lover “kisses me on the cheek in a language/ that needs no translation.” The poet’s sensitive and insightful voice allows these stirring poems to successfully explore the forces acting on love in a complex world, and the unshakable promise of understanding and belonging. (Feb.)
José Olivarez's narration of his poetry collection offers listeners a connection with his love circle. The people he loves include his friends, parents, brothers, and wife. Between each poem he provides commentary, which lends the audiobook a conversational tone. Some of the poems are read to audiences and include background sounds of clapping and laughter. There's also a sense of community relating to his Mexican culture. Olivarez connects listeners with his friends at his alma mater, Harvard, and talks about his dad, his brother, and the poems inspired by his wife. His tone is warm, even when the commentary is harsh. The first half of the audiobook is in English, and the second half is in Spanish. T.E.C. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
José Olivarez's narration of his poetry collection offers listeners a connection with his love circle. The people he loves include his friends, parents, brothers, and wife. Between each poem he provides commentary, which lends the audiobook a conversational tone. Some of the poems are read to audiences and include background sounds of clapping and laughter. There's also a sense of community relating to his Mexican culture. Olivarez connects listeners with his friends at his alma mater, Harvard, and talks about his dad, his brother, and the poems inspired by his wife. His tone is warm, even when the commentary is harsh. The first half of the audiobook is in English, and the second half is in Spanish. T.E.C. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
