Under the Samán Tree: Poems on Home, Longing, and Belonging

Dominican. Believer. Wife. Mother. Immigrant. These are the different labels Rosa Lía Gilbert has learned to embody, in all of their beauty and complexity. In her debut collection, Under the Samán Tree, Gilbert takes readers on a journey across the ocean, back to the Dominican Republic, where she longs to be. Along the way, she invites them to walk through the American immigrant experience with her. Written in a lyrical and bilingual voice, these poems will leave the reader nostalgic and even homesick for a place they never knew they longed for, while seeking to answer the questions, Where do we belong? Does a perfect home exist? Or is it all just a tropical dream? Full of bursts of life, vibrant Caribbean imagery, and Spanish musicality, Gilbert's collection translates into a universal story of home, exile, and faith, as Whitney Rio-Ross, poetry editor of Fare Forward, so aptly applauds.

Review :
PRAISE FOR UNDER THE SAMÁN TREE Under the Samán Tree is an aching collection that pulsates with dual longings and language. This book is so necessary for our exact cultural moment that calling it 'timely' would be an injustice... It was born for such a time as this. Rosa offers an intimate look at what it feels like to belong to two places at once. -DEIDRE BRALEY, author of The Shape I Take Los poemas reunidos en Under the Samán Tree intentan aplacar la sed de quien en algún momento estuvo saciado, acaso sin saberlo. La mujer detrás de estos versos se niega a ceder su lugar, su derecho sagrado a ese lugar de origen que es tan contundente como elusivo. El olor de una fruta, un acento que recuerda el vaivén del mar, la lengua bifurcada de los que se van sin dejar de pertenecer se convierte en la materia prima de quien siempre parece colocada en un umbral, cercanamente lejos. Hasta cierto punto, con este libro Rosa Lía Gilbert emprende el regreso definitivo a casa, pero esta es una casa nueva, la que se funda a partir de una lengua que es refugio y puente; punto de partida y destino final. Poemas que piensan, que acompañan, que consuelan. Qué alivio encontrar una voz que sabe nombrar el dolor, el miedo, la injusticia, pero también la belleza, la fe, el milagro. -MARGARITA PINTADO BURGOS, author of Ojo en celo/Eye in Heat Rosa Lía Gilbert's poems capture longings that often feel too profound to articulate. Her earnest voice, palpable imagery, and bilingual musicality bring her experience as a Dominican woman and immigrant to life and translate it into a universal story of home, exile, and faith. I trust that Gilbert's poetry will resonate with readers and that the God who holds her fractured heart together will speak through it. -WHITNEY RIO-ROSS, essayist, poetry editor for Fare Forward, and author of Birthmarks Poetry for such a time as this. Under the Samán Tree: Poems on Home, Longing, and Belonging beautifully invites readers into the experience of an immigrant to America and the beauty and sorrow of a heart with two homes. Gilbert masterfully honors both her native land and her adopted land in a way that will inspire readers to know and love their own homes and heritage. With a hospitality full of joy and color, she welcomes us to join her Under the Samán Tree. -CHELSEA FRASER, poet and author of The Mother Tree