🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About José Olivarez
“Citizen Illegal”, his debut book of poetry, won the 2018 Chicago Review of Books Poetry Prize and was a finalist for the PEN/Jean Stein Award. It was named a top book of the year 2018 by NPR, The Adroit Journal, and the New York Public Library. In the year 2018, he was named a Debut Poet of 2018 by Poets & Writers and was awarded the first annual Author and Artist in Justice Award from the Phillips Brooks House Association. In the year 2019, he was also awarded Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg and Ruth Lilly Poetry Fellowship from the Poetry Foundation. He has also gotten a fellowship in 2016 from Poets House Emerging Fellowship. Jose’s also worked for the educated and writing organizations Urban Word in New York and Young Chicago Authors, which produces the youth poetry festival.
All Book Series by José Olivarez
This Is Modern Art: A Play
Series opener · book 1 of 8 · published 2016 Anthology · Kevin Coval,Idris Goodwin
A People's History of Chicago
Book 2 of 8 · published 2017 Anthology · Kevin Coval,Chancellor Bennett
Black Girl Magic
Book 3 of 8 · published 2018 Anthology · Mahogany L. Browne,Idrissa Simmonds,Jamila Woods,Patricia Smith,Athena Dixon,J.P. Howard
Too Much Midnight
Latest in the series · book 8 of 8 · published 2020 Anthology · Krista Franklin
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is José Olivarez?
“Citizen Illegal”, his debut book of poetry, won the 2018 Chicago Review of Books Poetry Prize and was a finalist for the PEN/Jean Stein Award. It was named a top book of the year 2018 by NPR, The Adroit Journal, and the New York Public Library. In the year 2018, he was named a Debut Poet of 2018 by Poets & Writers and was awarded the first annual Author and Artist in Justice Award from the Phillips Brooks House Association.
Which José Olivarez series should I start with?
The best place to start is the BreakBeat Poets series, the earliest of José Olivarez's multi-book series: it opens with This Is Modern Art: A Play (2016) and runs to 8 books across 2016–2020, ending with Too Much Midnight (2020).
How many books has José Olivarez written?
José Olivarez has 10 books catalogued in this guide, published between 2016 and 2023. 8 of them belong to 1 named series — the largest being the BreakBeat Poets series with 8 books — and 2 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should José Olivarez's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. José Olivarez's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are BreakBeat Poets (2016–2020, 8 books).
How are José Olivarez's books organised into series?
This guide splits José Olivarez's 10 books into 1 named series and 2 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: BreakBeat Poets (8 books, 2016–2020).