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Episode 99 with Sara Borjas, Profound Thinker, Script-Flipper, Proud Pochx, and Author of the Breathtaking Heart Like a Window, Mouth Like a Cliff
Episode 99 Notes and Links to Sara Borjas’ Work
On Episode 99 of The Chills at Will Podcast, Pete welcomes Sara Borjas, and the two talk about, among other topics, Sara’s relationship with language, bilingualism and identity, pochismo, formative and transformative writers and teachers, and themes and ideas from Sara’s standout collection, Heart Like a Window, Mouth Like a Cliff.
SARA BORJAS is a Xicanx pocha, is from the Americas before it was stolen and its people were colonized, and is a Fresno poet. George Floyd. Delaina Ashley Yaun Gonzalez. Lorenzo Perez. Xiaojie Tan. Say their names. Joyce Echaquan. Her debut collection of poetry, Heart Like a Window, Mouth Like a Cliff was published by Noemi Press in 2019 and won a 2020 American Book Award. Juanito Falcon. Breonna Taylor. Daoyou Feng. Elcias Hernandez-Ortiz. Sara was named one of Poets & Writers 2019 Debut Poets, is a 2017 CantoMundo Fellow, and the recipient of the 2014 Blue Mesa Poetry Prize. Hyun Jung Grant. Ahmaud Arbery. Suncha Kim. Her work can be found in Ploughshares, The Rumpus, Poem-a-Day by The Academy of American Poets, Alta and The Offing, amongst others. Sandra Bland. Soon Chung Park. Yong Ae Yue. She teaches innovative undergraduates at UC Riverside, believes that all Black lives matter and will resist white supremacy until Black liberation is realized, lives in Los Angeles, and stays rooted in Fresno. Say their names. Justice for George Floyd and the countless others. She digs oldiez, outer space, aromatics, and tiny prints, is about decentering whiteness in literature, creative writing, and daily life.
Buy Sara Borjas' Heart Like a Window, Mouth Like a Cliff
From The Rumpus:"A CLEANSING TORNADO: HEART LIKE A WINDOW, MOUTH LIKE A CLIFF BY SARA BORJAS"
The Georgia Review Review of Heart Like a Window, Mouth Like a Cliff
“Pocha and Proud: An Interview with Sara Borjas” from Los Angeles Review of Books
At about 2:30, Sara talks about her relationship with language growing up, particularly her relationship with Spanish and bilingualism
At about 6:00, Sara explains the “pocho lecture” and how speaking Spanish was punished in her parents’ lives
At about 9:10, Pete asks Sara what she was reading as a kid, and if she “saw herself” in what she read
At about 11:10, Sara talks about her first exposure to writers of color, guided by Professors Alex Espinoza and Sameeta Najmee, and reading greats like Helena Maria Viramontes and Marisela Norte
At about 12:15, Pete and Sara talk about their shared admiration for Marisela Norte and Sara's work connecting to that of Moffat Takadiwa
At about 13:00, Sara talks about Tomás Rivera and his background and connections to UIC Riverside where she teaches
At about 14:00, Sara muses on the void that existed in her reading that “aligned with whiteness” and how it affected her
At about 15:50, Pete and Sara discuss “pocho” and its implications; Sara talks about reclaiming its meaning
At about 20:00, Sara describes the ways in which people of color, her parents included, have been innovative in escaping prejudice and oversimplified narratives
At about 20:45, Pete asks Sara about “pocho” in work that has come in recent years, including by innovators like Alan Chazaro, Episode 92 guest
At about 23:20, Sara shouts out writers who have and continue to have an effect on her through their chill-inducing work, including Marwa Helal, Aria Aber, Layli Long Soldier, Anthony Cody, Tongo Eisen-Martin, Roque Dalton, Bob Kaufman, Alejandra Pizarnik, and some standout students of hers
At about 26:25, Pete asks Sara how she explains to her students about “language to assert power,” including how Marwa Helal flips the script
At about 28:30, Pete wonders about Sara’s thoughts on “decoding” her poetry, and poetry “having one answers”
At about 31:30, Pete asks Sara about the idea of reciting poetry from memory, and she talks about the “power” that comes from memorizing, including how she ta
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Episode 99 Notes and Links to Sara Borjas’ Work
On Episode 99 of The Chills at Will Podcast, Pete welcomes Sara Borjas, and the two talk about, among other topics, Sara’s relationship with language, bilingualism and identity, pochismo, formative and transformative writers and teachers, and themes and ideas from Sara’s standout collection, Heart Like a Window, Mouth Like a Cliff.
SARA BORJAS is a Xicanx pocha, is from the Americas before it was stolen and its people were colonized, and is a Fresno poet. George Floyd. Delaina Ashley Yaun Gonzalez. Lorenzo Perez. Xiaojie Tan. Say their names. Joyce Echaquan. Her debut collection of poetry, Heart Like a Window, Mouth Like a Cliff was published by Noemi Press in 2019 and won a 2020 American Book Award. Juanito Falcon. Breonna Taylor. Daoyou Feng. Elcias Hernandez-Ortiz. Sara was named one of Poets & Writers 2019 Debut Poets, is a 2017 CantoMundo Fellow, and the recipient of the 2014 Blue Mesa Poetry Prize. Hyun Jung Grant. Ahmaud Arbery. Suncha Kim. Her work can be found in Ploughshares, The Rumpus, Poem-a-Day by The Academy of American Poets, Alta and The Offing, amongst others. Sandra Bland. Soon Chung Park. Yong Ae Yue. She teaches innovative undergraduates at UC Riverside, believes that all Black lives matter and will resist white supremacy until Black liberation is realized, lives in Los Angeles, and stays rooted in Fresno. Say their names. Justice for George Floyd and the countless others. She digs oldiez, outer space, aromatics, and tiny prints, is about decentering whiteness in literature, creative writing, and daily life.
Buy Sara Borjas' Heart Like a Window, Mouth Like a Cliff
From The Rumpus:"A CLEANSING TORNADO: HEART LIKE A WINDOW, MOUTH LIKE A CLIFF BY SARA BORJAS"
The Georgia Review Review of Heart Like a Window, Mouth Like a Cliff
“Pocha and Proud: An Interview with Sara Borjas” from Los Angeles Review of Books
At about 2:30, Sara talks about her relationship with language growing up, particularly her relationship with Spanish and bilingualism
At about 6:00, Sara explains the “pocho lecture” and how speaking Spanish was punished in her parents’ lives
At about 9:10, Pete asks Sara what she was reading as a kid, and if she “saw herself” in what she read
At about 11:10, Sara talks about her first exposure to writers of color, guided by Professors Alex Espinoza and Sameeta Najmee, and reading greats like Helena Maria Viramontes and Marisela Norte
At about 12:15, Pete and Sara talk about their shared admiration for Marisela Norte and Sara's work connecting to that of Moffat Takadiwa
At about 13:00, Sara talks about Tomás Rivera and his background and connections to UIC Riverside where she teaches
At about 14:00, Sara muses on the void that existed in her reading that “aligned with whiteness” and how it affected her
At about 15:50, Pete and Sara discuss “pocho” and its implications; Sara talks about reclaiming its meaning
At about 20:00, Sara describes the ways in which people of color, her parents included, have been innovative in escaping prejudice and oversimplified narratives
At about 20:45, Pete asks Sara about “pocho” in work that has come in recent years, including by innovators like Alan Chazaro, Episode 92 guest
At about 23:20, Sara shouts out writers who have and continue to have an effect on her through their chill-inducing work, including Marwa Helal, Aria Aber, Layli Long Soldier, Anthony Cody, Tongo Eisen-Martin, Roque Dalton, Bob Kaufman, Alejandra Pizarnik, and some standout students of hers
At about 26:25, Pete asks Sara how she explains to her students about “language to assert power,” including how Marwa Helal flips the script
At about 28:30, Pete wonders about Sara’s thoughts on “decoding” her poetry, and poetry “having one answers”
At about 31:30, Pete asks Sara about the idea of reciting poetry from memory, and she talks about the “power” that comes from memorizing, including how she ta
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