Barbara Jane Reyes is an American poet whose work "explores the translatable and untranslatable collisions of writing, self and culture."

Early life

Reyes was born in

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

, and raised in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

. She received her B.A. in Ethnic Studies at

UC Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...

. As an undergraduate, Reyes "served as

editor in chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The editor-in-chief heads all departments of the organization and is held account ...

for ''maganda'' magazine, and witnessed the emergence of Filipino American literary figures." Reyes received her M.F.A. at

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Francisco, California, United States. It was established in 1899 as the San Francisco State Normal School and is ...

Career

Reyes is the author of ''Gravities of Center'' (Arkipelago, 2003), ''Poeta en San Francisco'' (Tinfish, 2005), for which she received the

James Laughlin Award The James Laughlin Award, formerly the Lamont Poetry Prize, is given annually for a poet's second published book; it is the only major poetry award that honors a second book. The award is given by the Academy of American Poets, and is noted as on ...

of the Academy of American Poets, and ''Diwata'' (

BOA Editions, Ltd. BOA Editions, Ltd. is an American independent, non-profit literary publishing company located in Rochester, New York, founded in 1976 by the late poet, editor and translator, A. Poulin, Jr., and publishing poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. The pr ...

, 2010). Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in numerous publications, including ''2nd Avenue Poetry'', ''Asian Pacific American Journal'', ''Boxcar Poetry Review'', ''Chain'', ''Crate'', ''Interlope'', ''

New American Writing ''New American Writing'' is an annual American literary magazine emphasizing contemporary American poetry, including a range of innovative contemporary writing. ''New American Writing'' is published by OINK! Press, a nonprofit organization. T ...

'', ''Nocturnes Review'', ''

North American Review The ''North American Review'' (''NAR'') was the first literary magazine in the United States. It was founded in Boston in 1815 by journalist Nathan Hale (journalist), Nathan Hale and others. It was published continuously until 1940, after which i ...

'', ''Notre Dame Review'', ''Parthenon West Review'', as well as in the anthologies ''Babaylan'' (

Aunt Lute Books Aunt Lute Books is an American multicultural feminist press based in San Francisco, California. The publisher also seeks to work with and support first-time authors. Publishing history In 1982, Aunt Lute Book Company was founded by Barb Wieser a ...

, 2000), ''Eros Pinoy'' (Anvil, 2001), ''InvAsian: Asian Sisters Represent'' (Study Center Press, 2003), ''Going Home to a Landscape'' (Calyx, 2003), ''Coloring Book'' (Rattlecat, 2003), ''Not Home But Here'' (Anvil, 2003), ''Pinoy Poetics'' (Meritage, 2004), ''Asian Americans in the San Francisco Bay Area'' (Avalon Publishing, 2004), ''100 Love Poems: Philippine Love Poetry Since 1905'' (University of the Philippines Press, 2004), ''Red Light: Superheroes, Saints and Sluts'' (

Arsenal Pulp Press Arsenal Pulp Press is a Canadian independent book publishing company, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company publishes a broad range of titles in both fiction and non-fiction, focusing primarily on underrepresented genres such as und ...

, 2005), and ''Graphic Poetry'' (Victionary, 2005). Reyes is an adjunct professor at University of San Francisco’s Yuchengco Philippine Studies Program. She has previously taught

Creative Writing Creative writing is any writing that goes beyond the boundaries of normal professional, journalistic, academic, or technical forms of literature, typically identified by an emphasis on craft and technique, such as narrative structure, character ...

Mills College Mills College at Northeastern University in Oakland, California is part of Northeastern University's global university system. Mills College was founded as the Young Ladies Seminary in 1852 in Benicia, California; it was relocated to Oakland in ...

, and Philippine Studies at

University of San Francisco The University of San Francisco (USF) is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit university in San Francisco, California, United States. Founded in 1855, it has nearly 9,000 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate degrees ...

. She co-edits Doveglion Press, a publisher of political literature, with her husband poet Oscar Bermeo. Reyes currently resides in Oakland, California.

Published works

Full-length poetry collections *''Gravities of Center'' (Arkipelago Books, 2003). *''Poeta en San Francisco''
Tinfish Press
2005). *''Diwata'' (

, 2010). *''To Love as Aswang: songs, fragments and found objects'' (Philippine American Writers and Artists, Inc., 2015). *''Invocation to Daughters'' (City Lights Publishers, 2017). *''Letters to a Young Brown Girl'' (BOA Editions Ltd., 2020). Full-length literary nonfiction * ''Wanna Peek into My Notebook? Notes on Pinay Liminality'' (Paloma Press, 2022). Chapbooks *''Easter Sunday''
Ypolita Press
2008). *''Cherry''

2008). *''West Oakland Sutra for the AK-47 Shooter at 3:00 AM and other Oakland poems''
Deep Oakland Editions
2008). Poems online *“Estuary,” “Cherry,” “Pink.�

Issue 8. *“ alleon prayer” “ compendium of angels” “ iwata taga ilog at dagat�
HOW2
2006. *"The Night Manny Pacquiao KO’ed Oscar De La Hoya.
The Rumpus
2009. *"One Question, Several Answers.

Spring 2010.

References

External links

The poet's homepage
Reviews and Interviews
National Book Critics Circle: Small Press Spotlight September 2010RAINTAXI online Winter 2006/2007The Pedestal Magazine > Archives > ISSUE THIRTY-FIVE Aug-Oct (06) > Reviews > Barbara Jane Reyes's Poeta en San Francisco reviewed by Collin Kelley
* Eileen Tabios interview
Barbara Jane Reyes and Paolo Javier
Audio/Video Links
Audio: From the FishhouseAudio: The Blood-Jet Writing HourVideo:
at

Letras Latinas Letras Latinas is the literary initiative at the University of Notre Dame's Institute for Latino Studies (ILS), with an office on campus in South Bend, Indiana, as well as Washington, D.C. It was founded in 2004 and strives to enhance the visibility ...

Oral History Project
Video: The Campanil at Mills College
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reyes, Barbara Jane Living people American poets of Asian descent American writers of Filipino descent Filipino emigrants to the United States Writers from Manila 1971 births American women poets 21st-century American poets 21st-century American women writers Mills College faculty University of San Francisco faculty University of California, Berkeley alumni San Francisco State University alumni American women academics