07/21/2025
Despojo. By Tatiana Figueroa Ramirez
"What Tatiana has done with Despojo is pure delight! She offers home, love, peace and healing. Her heritage woven into each line, sharing her roots and the wisdom from her ancestors. With each poem, she tells a story with a quiet yet bold flare that only she possesses. Masterfully written and a complete gem is this masterpiece!"—C. Thomas, Poet & Author of Bernard’s Bedroom
"Despojo waters us with a conversation of identity Caribeños know all too well. A refreshing exploration of both wanting to belong and tracing back all that makes us feel seen. This collection reminds us that it is in the shedding of skin that we learn to mend."—Melania-Luisa Marte, Poet & Author of Mela
"Despojo is a testament to so many things: the pain and healing in the aftermath of sexual violence, the lineages Tatiana honors and writes within, the fact that love is a verb. The poems in Despojo carry an impossible amount of compassion for their subjects. I learn from Tatiana Figueroa Ramirez the act of staying put and just looking; she is a poet deeply invested in witnessing her family and ancestry, in writing with an uncompromising eye towards balancing the truth and the turmoil. She never turns away. I am so lulled by her language, which is so skillful it has a spine. Flowers dot the pages, the air becomes thinner and sweet with molasses. Do yourself a favour and learn what it really means to trace lineage, to write with strength towards people who have hurt you, to stand and carry an entire history on your shoulders."—Nancy Huang, Author of Favorite Daughter
"What Tatiana has done with Despojo is pure delight! She offers home, love, peace and healing. Her heritage woven into each line, sharing her roots and the wisdom from her ancestors. With each poem, she tells a story with a quiet yet bold flare that only she possesses. Masterfully written and
