We are in a renaissance of reclamation—the literary scene is full of writers of color exploring their Californian roots. And in this chorus of voices, Wendy M. Thompson’s collection Black California Gold stands out.

I first became a fan of Thompson when The Ana published two of her poems, my favorite being “The Carquinez Bridge is Now a Boundary.” Even then, I could see how Thompson fused reverence for place with grief and reflection in a way that felt both intimate and expansive. Oakland-born, Thompson explores her Black and Chinese roots as a first-generation Californian—from tracking the layered histories of land and migration to interrogating memory as both inheritance and burden.

In Black California Gold, she sharpens this vision with remarkable clarity and lyric precision. Each poem feels excavated, as if pulled from deep within the soil of California itself, revealing stories too often buried or overlooked. Her language is lush without excess, grounded yet luminous, and she moves seamlessly between the personal and the historical. What makes this collection truly exceptional is its emotional range: it mourns, it questions, it celebrates, and it insists on presence.

Thompson doesn’t just write about California—she reclaims it, redefines it, and invites readers to see it anew. This is a collection that lingers long after the final page, demanding to be revisited. 

London Pinkney, Editor-in-Chief