And This House is Only a Nest L.A. Book Launch

Join us for the L.A. book launch of And This House is Only a Nest, the second full-length poetry collection by author, Jose Oseguera. The author is celebrating with a set of performances in the Wanda Coleman Theater featuring Elizabeth Metzger, Charles Jensen, Tamara Miller, and jimmy vega.

"And This House is Only a Nest begins with an abuelo—a grandpa—who is not the gentle sort but one that conjures up fear, anger, work, stubbornness, and resilience. Then a peek at the poet’s father, his mother, the mocosos on his street, classmates, locos sparking up joints, misinterpreted Bible passages, soccer as metaphor—realistic scenes rendered like Dutch paintings. One of the best poems references the Los Angeles Dodgers, the late innings, with 'three kids, two strikes . . .' while visiting his imprisoned father. Surrounded by troubles in the initial poems, the last poems soften into a coda that is something like a sigh, a sigh of relief leaving that “lopsided” house called childhood. Having searched for an adult man to emulate, the poet discovers, to his surprise and ours, that he has become that man, a husband, a father, a contemplative figure." —Gary Soto

Book Signings and reception to follow after the readings.

Doors Open: 7:30 PM I Readings: 8:00 PM

Livestream: If you can’t join us in-person the event will be livestreamed on at the scheduled time of the event.

Jose Oseguera is the author of the poetry collection The Milk of Your Blood. His poems have appeared in Chautauqua, Sonora Review, North Dakota Quarterly, and Catamaran. He was the recipient of the Nancy Dew Taylor Award and has been nominated for Best of the Net, Pushcart and Forward Prizes.

Elizabeth Metzger is the author of Lying In, as well as The Spirit Papers, winner of the Juniper Prize for Poetry. Her third collection, The Going Is Forever, is forthcoming from Milkweed Editions in 2025. Elizabeth is a poetry editor at the Los Angeles Review of Books.

Charles Jensen (he/him) is the author of three poetry collections, most recently Instructions Between Takeoff and Landing. His hybrid book blending memoir and film analysis, Splice of Life, will be published in May 2024. The City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs designated him a 2019-2020 Cultural Trailblazer, and he is the recipient of the Outwrite Nonfiction Chapbook Award, Zócalo Poetry Prize, and an Artist’s Project Grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts. His poetry has appeared in American Poetry Review, Crab Orchard Review, The Journal, New England Review, and Prairie Schooner, and essays have appeared in Exposition Review, Passages North, and The Florida Review. He hosts The Write Process, a podcast in which one writer tells the story of crafting one work from concept to completion. He lives in Long Beach and directs the Writers’ Program at UCLA Extension.

Tamara Miller is a writer, performer, parent, and political organizer. Recent work has appeared in New Ohio Review, McSweeney’s, Bellevue Literary Review, and elsewhere. In addition to an MFA in poetry from St. Mary's College of California, she holds degrees in music and war strategy. Alum and scholarship recipient at Bread Loaf, Community of Writers, and Juniper. Find her on instagram @tamaramillerwriter

is the child of Mexican immigrants, a Chicanx Los Angeles born and raised poet, educator, and interdisciplinary artist. their debut poetry collection will be published by What Books Press in 2025. Formally trained at California Institute of the Arts & at University of California, Los Angeles, they are a former 2023 ELL Faculty Fellow at CalArts. vega’s poems have appeared or are forthcoming in Broken Lens Journal, Maintenant, Furious Pure Magazine, and elsewhere. they are the Associate Director of Beyond Baroque Literary Arts/Center.

This event is Free & In-Person at Beyond Baroque. Masks are encouraged while inside our center.

Event attendees are expected to behave in a respectful and considerate manner while in our space. Beyond Baroque reserves the right to remove individuals from our events, virtual or otherwise, if they are not respecting the space, fellow attendees, or performers.

Because this is a free event seating is limited. Please arrive early.

Host or Publisher Beyond Baroque Literary | Arts Center