How to Be a Good Savage and Other Poems

“[Sanchez] manages to simultaneously honor and challenge traditions — her own and those of others — presenting a Zoque worldview in dialogue with global ecology, feminism and modernity writ large.”

“A groundbreaking and deeply passionate poetry collection that celebrates language and feminine power. Not to be missed.”

“As the first woman to ever publish a book of poetry in Zoque, a language spoken in Southern Mexico, and Spanish, this poetry collection encompasses colonialism, lineage, and the balance to embrace ancestral roots and the present. Powerful and lyrical, this collection is unlike anything other collection of poems I’ve read before.”

“This trilingual poetry collection is truly a remarkable landmark… . A compelling and storied audio with appeal for those who appreciate international poetry, Spanish speakers, and listeners from Indigenous Mexican communities seeking literary representation.”

“Coming from the only woman to ever publish a book of poetry in Zoque and Spanish, this timely, powerful collection pairs the bilingual originals with an English translation for the first time.”

“Mikeas Sánchez’s poetry collection, How to Be a Good Savage, fractures linguistic borders, creating an atmosphere of fluid dialogue… . As the poems dance between languages, they become a testament to the cultural tensions produced by colonialism.”

“How to Be a Good Savage and Other Poems is not simply another poetry collection. Its pages are, notably, a means of cultural and linguistic preservation, and each and every poem is call for attention to and awareness of the cultures, beliefs, and peoples colonialism has long displaced and overshadowed.”

“[A] testament to the power and importance of preserving through translation lyric poetry in languages across the Americas.”

“In a fiercely personal yet authoritative voice, prolific contemporary poet Mikeas Sánchez explores the worldview of the Zoque people of southern Mexico. Her paced, steely lyrics fuse cosmology, lineage, feminism, and environmental activism into a singular body of work that stands for the self and the collective in the same instant.”

“Milkweed’s Seedbank series is one of the most exciting and visionary projects in contemporary publishing. Taking the long view, these volumes run parallel to the much-hyped books of the moment to demonstrate the possibility and hope inherent in all great literature.”

“Through its cultural-linguistic contribution to narrative diversity, Milkweed’s Seedbank series is a vital tool in imagining the futures possible for humanity beyond the anthropocene. Bringing works from Greek, K’iche’, German, Russian (and more!) whose authors are deeply rooted in their homelands, each voice encountered has resonated with me on a seemingly cellular level—shifting and changing both who I am and can be. I will continue to press these books into the hands of compassionate readers and cannot wait to share the forthcoming titles in the project!”

“Milkweed as a publishing house has long been championing literary works both fictitious and true to life centered around culture, nature, and environmentalism. The Seedbank series serves as both a marvelous introduction to the books Milkweed provides and as a collection of essential stories that ought to be on everyone’s radar. The words behind these front covers highlight life-changing experiences, knowledge, and ways of life from communities that are seldom otherwise heard from in the publishing world through an authentic cultural lens. What I’ve read from the Seedbank line is phenomenal, and I look forward to spending time with future works in the series.”