To the North / Al norte

León Salvatierra is a Nicaraguan poet who migrated to the United States at the age of 15. In 2014 he earned his PhD in Hispanic languages and literatures from the University of California, Berkeley, and in 2020 he received an MFA in poetry from the University of California, Davis. In 2020 he won the Juana Goergen Poetry Prize. He is currently teaching culture and literature courses in the Department of Chicana/o Studies at UC Davis. Javier O. Huerta is the author of American Copia: An Immigrant Epic and Some Clarifications y otros poemas, which was awarded the 31st Chicano/ Latino Literary Prize from the University of California, Irvine. He earned his MFA from the Bilingual Creative Writing Program at the University of Texas at El Paso. Currently he teaches at Mission College in Santa Clara, California, and lives in Oakland.

• ContentsIntroductionIntroducciónTo the ReaderAl lectorAt the CemeteryEn el cementerioActActoGeneral IndexÍndice generalMemoryMemoriaUpon ReturningAl regresoAlexis vs. PryorAlexis vs. PryorI, Too, Speak of RiversYo también hablo de ríosStray ThoughtPensamiento callejeroInsomnia IInsomnio IThe Case of My BooksEl caso de mis librosKeyboard VoicesLas voces del tecladoJumpSaltoTo the NorthAl norteLuxembourgLuxemburgoLeón Salvatierra was born the day they killed somozaLeón Salvatierra nació el día que mataron a somozaBoomBoomParanoiaParanoia...Watching TVInsomnio CInsomnia CThe Night Manny Pacquiao Reconfigured Oscar De La Hoya's Beautiful FaceLa noche que Manny Pacquiao reconfiguró el bello rostro de Oscar De La HoyaChristmas NewsNoticia de NavidadGiftRegaloSanta's DietLa dieta de SantaThe Weight of LoveEl peso del amorAttemptIntentoInsomnia OInsomnio OCanes on FireBastones encendidosYahoo AccountCuenta YahooThe Boy's NoseLa nariz del niñoThe Swearing of the ImmigrantThe Swearing of the ImmigrantShadowboxingBoxeando la sombraCanto OneCanto UnoExit NYExit NYAbout the Author and Translator

"By combining prose and poetry, and blurring the boundaries between genres and nations, Salvatierra manages to assert individual agency and wrest control of his own story."—Diego Báez. Poetry Foundation"Largely translated by Javier O. Huerta, it is simultaneously heartbreaking and hilarious — even more so if you can read it in both languages."—Daniel A. Olivas, Los Angeles Times"The collection chronicles the poet's journey from Nicaragua to the U.S. as he faces obstacles as an undocumented teenager and as he adjusts to the demands of life in a new land. To read this book is to get is poignant and poetic look at what it means to be marginalized in the U.S."—Jose B. Gonzalez, Latino Stories"The poetry here is at once intimate and public, which makes for a complex and rich alchemy. León Salvatierra's range of registers is breathtaking."—Francisco Aragón, poet, editor, director of Letras Latinas at the Institute for Latino Studies, University of Norte Dame, and author of After Rubén"To the North/Al norte makes poetry feel essential, that without it, Salvatierra's speakers would become unmoored, losing everything that they have tried so hard to recover. Salvatierra clearly revels in language. . . . This collection is a significant contribution to the growing body of undocumented literature as well as Latinx literature."—Maceo Montoya, professor, University of California, Davis, author of Preparatory Notes for Future Masterpieces"The memory and humanity that Salvatierra reaps along the way are ultimately challenged, and subdued . . . What we're left with is the impression of autonomy; and its anatomy of longing."—Delphic Reviews