The Best Poetry Collections are Queer, BIPOC, and Indie Published
At first glance, task #7 of the 2024 Read Harder Challenge might sound a little intimidating, especially if you’re not a poetry reader: Read an indie published collection of poetry by a BIPOC or queer author. Here’s the good news, though: if you go out looking for queer and BIPOC poetry, you’ll find that most of it is put out by independent presses. Poetry is not seen as a big money maker, so it’s indie publishers who tend to be the ones championing poetry for the love of it. And many indie publishers also prioritize queer and BIPOC authors. This is a Venn diagram with a lot of overlap.
In fact, there is so much overlap that all of my recommendations today are queer and BIPOC. Part of the reason for that is I firmly believe the best poetry being published today is queer, BIPOC, and indie published. Some of the most acclaimed poets writing (and performing) now are queer and BIPOC, and many of them got their start with indie presses.
So, whether you’re already a poetry reader or just dipping your toe into the format, you’ll find a book to love on this list. These poets are writing about racism, colonialism, queer love, family, immigration, disability, the nature of consciousness, and so much more in lines that will take up permanent residence in your subconscious. Poetry is one of the best ways to communicate pure emotion and to step into someone else’s life, which is why reading poetry from different perspectives can be so eye-opening.
So, let’s jump into seven of the best queer and BIPOC poetry collections published by indie presses!
Bodymap by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha
Let’s start with one of my favorite poetry collections. Bodymap is a “queer disabled femme-of-colour love song” about disability justice, politics, survival, and queer kinship. It’s written in an accessible style perfect for readers intimidated by poetry. It’s published by Mawenzi House Publishers, an indie Canadian publisher.
Don’t Call Us Dead by Danez Smith
This collection was a finalist for the National Book Award for Poetry. It examines life in the United States when you’re queer and Black, discussing police violence, Smith’s HIV-positive diagnosis, and white supremacy. This is published by Graywolf Press (Minneapolis, MN), which is a name I saw pop up a lot while researching queer BIPOC poetry, so their catalog is a great place to start for more options!
Soft Science by Franny Choi
If you don’t read a lot of poetry, you might not know that poetry can have different genres, and Soft Science has a sci-fi bent. It includes a series of poems inspired by the Turing Test which question the nature of consciousness. It also explores Asian American femininity and the effects of technology on our agency and even on gender. It’s published by Alice James Books, based in Farmington, ME.
even this page is white by Vivek Shraya
Vivek Shraya is a trans artist whose work stretches across music, poetry, theater, fashion, and visual art. She’s also written novels, picture books, nonfiction, a graphic memoir, and more. Here is her debut poetry collection, which experiments with form while interrogating race and racism. It’s also published by my favorite indie publisher, Arsenal Pulp Press, based out of Vancouver, BC.
Postcolonial Love Poem by Natalie Diaz
In case I haven’t already convincingly made my case that the best poetry out now is queer, BIPOC, and indie-published, this one is a Pulitzer Prize winner. In Postcolonial Love Poem, Diaz writes about how Indigenous people are erased, saying, “I am doing my best to not become a museum / of myself. I am doing my best to breathe in and out. // I am begging: Let me be lonely but not invisible.” She also weaves in queer poems about love and desire. This is another Graywolf Press title.
The Complete Works of Pat Parker edited by Julie R. Enszer
Pat Parker was a Black lesbian poet who was a contemporary of Audre Lorde, but unfortunately is not as well known. In this collection, the Sapphic Classics series highlights the political commentary she was making at that time about anti-blackness, Black queer liberation, and social justice — not to mention her erotic lesbian poetry. This is published by A Midsummer Night’s Press (New Haven, CT), in partnership with the lesbian literary journal Sinister Wisdom.
When I Grow Up I Want to Be a List of Further Possibilities by Chen Chen
This collection is Chen’s recounting of his messy relationship with his mother. In one poem, he says, “When my mother slapped me / for being dirty, diseased, led astray by Western devils, //a dirty, bad son, I cried, thirteen, already too old, / too male for crying.” He also writes about belief, dreams, love, nature, and more. It’s published by BOA Editions (Rochester, NY).
For more, check out these 20 Must-Read Queer Poetry Collections, these 10 Poetry Books by LGBTQ Asian Authors, and The Best Black Poets to Read (and Listen To!) Right Now. Give the publishers a quick google to see if they’re under the umbrella of one of the big five publishers (Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan, Hachette Book Group, and HarperCollins), but most of the books on these lists are by indie presses.
What are you planning to read for this task? Let’s chat in the comments!
Check out all the previous 2024 Read Harder posts here!
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