About this Event
Masks Required.
FlowerSong Press and Alegría Publishing, two of the hottest Latinx-focused independent presses in the nation, join forces for a live reading at Chevalier's Books Monday, August 29th at 6 pm. This six author reading will feature Matt Sedillo (Mowing Leaves of Grass and City on the Second Floor), Iris De Anda (Roots of Redemption: You Have No Right to Remain Silent), Briana Muñoz (Everything is Returned to the Soil/Todo Vuelve a la tierra ...), Alegría Zuluaga (Ella Es), Jean-Pierre Rueda (Herencias), and Virginia Bulacio (Luna Immigrante).
FlowerSong Press
Based in McAllen, TX, FlowerSong Press nurtures essential verse from, about, and through the borderlands. The voices of those from Latin America, the U.S.A. and all over the world. We are Literary, Lyrical, Boundless, and we welcome allies that understand and join in the voice of people of color and our struggle, truth, and hope. www.flowersongpress.com
Matt Sedillo has been described as the "best political poet in America" as well as "the poet laureate of the struggle." His work has drawn comparisons in print to Bertolt Brecht, Roque Dalton, Amiri Baraka, Alan Ginsberg, Carl Sandburg and various other legends of the past. Sedillo was the recipient of the 2017 Joe Hill Labor Poetry award, a panelist at the 2020 Texas book festival, and a participant in the 2011 San Francisco International Poetry Festival, and the 2022 Elba Poetry Festival. Sedillo has appeared on CSPAN and has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, Axios, and the Associated Press, among other publications. Sedillo has spoken at Casa de las Americas in Havana, Cuba, at numerous conferences and forums such as the Association of Writers and Writing Programs, the National Conference on Race & Ethnicity in American Higher Education, the National Association of Chicana/Chicano Studies, the Left Forum, the US Social Forum, and at over a hundred universities and colleges, including the University of Cambridge, among many others. Matt Sedillo is the author of Mowing Leaves of Grass (FlowerSong Press, 2019) and City on the Second Floor (FlowerSong Press, 2022). Both of which are taught at universities throughout the country. Sedillo is the current literary director of the Mexican Cultural Institute of Los Angeles.
Iris De Anda, a Guanaca Tapatia poet, speaker and musician, has been featured with KPFK, KPFA Pacifica Radio, organized with Academy of American Poets, performed at Los Angeles Latino Book Festival, Feria del Libro Tijuana, Casa de las Americas in Havana, Cuba, and is named one of Today's Revolutionary Women of Color. De Anda is author of Codeswitch: Fires from Mi Corazon. Her second poetry book Roots of Redemption: You Have No Right to Remain Silent is available now from FlowerSong Press. Find her on Instagram @lawriterunderground.
Briana Muñoz is a poet from Southern California. She is the author of Loose Lips, a poetry collection published by Prickly Pear Publishing (2019) and of Everything is Returned to the Soil published by FlowerSong Press (2021). Her work has been published in the Bravura Literary Journal, the Dryland Literary Journal, the Oakland Arts Review, in Boundless: The Anthology of the Rio Grande Valley International Poetry Festival, and the anthology, Reimagine America, among others. She is an Indigenous Mexica danzante. She is also the co-creator of Hairy Leg Lingerie, a creative collective birthed to highlight local talent from the non-binary, femme, and trans communities. Briana currently serves as the Volunteer Event Coordinator for the Sims Library of Poetry and was the Volunteer Fundraising Coordinator for the Luis J Rodriguez for CA Governor 2022 campaign.
Alegría Publishing
Alegría Publishing is born out of our passion to tell our LatinX stories that matter, especially those created by LatinX women, who have been silenced for too long. As with anything we have ever created through ALEGRÍA Bilingual Media, we take pride in our independent & highly curated magazines and books for they allow us to really take care of our quality, content, clients and authors. www.alegriamagazine/alegriapublishing.com
Alegría Zuluaga is a proud multi-ethnic woman, orgullosamente (proudly) Colombian, Mexican, and Indonesian. She is a hopeless romantic, a gardener, and a cultivator of sueños through her writing. Alegría is currently a student at California State University of Long Beach working on her Bachelors and majoring in Comparative World Literature and Linguistics. Her love for language and culture has always been a big motivator for her wandering spirit. A writer and an advocate for education through literature and art. She also teaches creative writing workshops in her hometown. Alegria’s work has been published in her university magazine. She has also performed at the International Latinx Conference, and HBO’s launch party of The Gordita Chronicles. Her first poetry collection focuses on the heartbreaks and heart mending she has learned to put together as a mosaic that is her first book Ella Es.
Jean-Pierre Rueda is a Costa Rican poet first published in Book by Authors: North Long Beach Anthology in 2009 and author of Her Eyes Were the Moon, a bilingual and I Was the Waves in 2020. His work is featured in La Raíz Magazine, a literary magazine focusing on poetry and visual art. Jean-Pierre has performed in live reading events such as Sims Library of Poetry Book Fair, the Panamanian International Film Festival in LA, My Place Cafe Noon Poetry Reading Events and Zoom events at the 2021 San Jose Poetry Festival Cultura Poetry Night, Dryland's Future Now Open Mic Digital Series, LTX Quest Conference, Saturday Afternoon Poetry Celebration of Latinx Poets and at La Raiz Magazine launch event. Jean-Pierre recently released his first Spanish poetry collection HERENCIAS through Alegría Publishing. His book discusses love, family, politics, heritage and celebrates historical Latinx figures as monuments of artistic and cultural success.
Virginia Bulacio is a poet, writer and educador. She was born in Argentina and immigrated to the United States during her high school years. She is currently working on her first poetry collection, Luna Immigrante, which explores themes of migration, home, Daca and dreams. She has performed in live readings at Latina Fest, The Panamanian International Film Festival in LA, The East LA Film festival and The Last Bookstore to celebrate Alegría’s 10th Anniversary. Virginia created a community group called Mágico to support undocumented children during the holidays and organize fundraisers for the undocumented community. www.virginiabulacio.com
Notes on parking in Larchmont Village:
Chevalier's does not have any parking, but there is paid meter parking on the street, a paid lot next to the bank, and free street parking parallel the Larchmont Blvd. on Lucerne Blvd.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Chevalier's Books, 133 North Larchmont Boulevard, Los Angeles, United States
USD 0.00