last readings of 2023

I have a few readings to close out the year. It seems fitting that the upcoming holidays are approaching as my book, the matchstick litanies, is making the rounds. So much of what’s recounted within it seemed to be linked to holidays, especially house fires.

All are listed in the events page but, in particular is this upcoming virtual reading. I hope I’ll get to see some of you at this or some of the other upcoming events!

last days of the pre-sale + upcoming readings

Pre-sales for my new book, the matchstick litanies, ends October 31, 2023. For those who purchase during this time period I’ll be sending a little gift by mail so don’t miss out!

Pre-sale purchases can be completed here.

Upcoming readings include BookWoman (Austin, TX) on November 2 with the master of body horror writing herself, Leticia Urieta. Then onto The Dakota (San Antonio, TX) on November 5, led by Eddie Vega.

A virtual reading with my publisher, Laura Van Prooyen, and press mate, Alexandra van de Kamp, is being planned at this moment. As is a reading in the RGV. Stay tuned!

Two upcoming readings in San Antonio, October 2023

The Blah Blah Blah Poetry Spot presents their Open Mic and Local Giants reading October 11, 2023, where 3 local poets read 3 poems of their choosing. And then a pre-sale celebration of the new book, the matchstick litanies, on October 14 at Poetic Republic. I hope to see old friends and wonderful poets at each of these upcoming events.

Pre-sale Now : the matchstick litanies

Books can be pre-ordered here.

About the book:

Blending poetic memoir and revelation, the matchstick litanies opens on family violence and women’s work – both often silenced. These richly-detailed poems, however, reclaim the voice of a speaker who excavates family stories woven with hard truths, spanning generations. They come to see clearly teir own “inheritance by what was visible: translucent scorpions braving the hot sidewalks, / winged ants following one another without end.” jo reyes-boitel’s poems refuse to look away from what is burning and find that sometimes fire can create a path for self-fulfillment.

Blurbs about the matchstick litanies:

the matchstick litanies hold the power to burn it all down, but they are wise survivors, weaving a poetics of witness and experience into an exceptional and necessary testimonio. The collection makes room for frogs and stars in its cinematography and for lyric leaps in its score to “bring the spirit back to the body” without “false sunrise” and with conocimiento. jo reyes-boitel is a master storyteller of the past and present with a keen eye on the future, which is an act of love for us all in need of this sabiduría.

—Emmy Pérez, 2020 Texas State Poet Laureate, With the River on Our Face

What might it mean to be in relation as husband and wife, as brother and sister, mother and daughter, father and daughter, as one wedded to the sky above and the surrounding landscape? In Matchstick Litanies, jo reyes-boitel is an attentive poet-observer telling us the answers rest in the nucleus of a family haunted by hurt. In this family men inherit pain, control pain, and bequeath its violence while women labor and exist at their mercy. In this way, the matchstick litanies is timely and speaks to the anti-woman sentiment so prevalent today. But despite the wreckage, it is reyes-boitel’s lyrical crafting of brief pastoral moments—mesquite trees passed on a winter’s drive home or the ‘constant bird caws, the constant sun’—that provide both poet and reader not escape from familial combustion, but a momentary solace.

—Niki Herd, author of The Language of Shedding Skin and co-editor Laura Hershey: On the Life & Work of an American Master

Through the darkness of so many of these new poems, jo’s resilient and beautiful voice resonates with longing and love for her subject matter. Haunting and memorable, these poems will linger in your mind and soul. Family, childhood, complicated and difficult relationships about here. The poet tends to her language with great care. Often these palpable images and lines will leave you breathless. reyes-boitel is an important poet, this book will alight your dreams and expectations!

—Virgil Suárez, visual artist, writer, and poet, AMERIKAN CHERNOBYL

the matchstick litanies

Poets often ask me how they’ll know a manuscript is complete. Truth is it can be difficult for the poet themselves to know because they are in every part of that manuscript. Distance helps. Editing can often make it even harder to distance unless the poet trusts that the work, as a whole, is good. This trust lets the poet hone in on the details – repeated words, tools, or forms, conjugations, typical/consistent poem endings/beginnings – and make those stronger, which then makes the poem as a whole better.

I edit others’ work and consider that anything I suggest doesn’t have to be accepted by the poet. But now, I’m working with Laura VanProoyen, a wonderful poet and editor and now publisher for Next Page Press, and it’s interesting to be on the other side of the table, considering and (mosty) accepting suggestions to subtly shift a poem.

All this to say: I have a book coming out (with incredible thanks to Laura) late 2023 titled the matchstick litanies. Return here for more information as publication nears!