About

Erica Mena is a poet, translator and print designer, not necessarily in that order. She is currently a student in the MFA in Literary Translation at the University of Iowa. Her original poetry has appeared or is forthcoming with Vanitas, the Dos Passos Review, Pressed Wafer, Arrowsmith Press and others. Her translations have appeared or are forthcoming with Words Without Borders, The Iowa Review, The Kenyon Review, PEN America, Asymptote, Two Lines and others.

She is the founding editor of Anomalous Press.

She is the coordinator and co-host of Reading the World Podcast, a monthly conversation about literary translation.

Selected Publications

Translated Books

Return to the Sea, selected poems by Etnairis Rivera (Arrowsmith Press, 2007)
Review and excerpt, The Mass Media (4/23/2007)

Nocturnal Rounds by Yasser Latif (twelve poems from Arabic)

Tres by Roberto Bolaño

Translations in Journals

from The Eternonaut (part 1; part 2) by Héctor G. Oesterheld, illustrated by Francisco Solano Lopez (Words Without Borders, January & February 2012).

“From the Grave of my Grave” by José María Lima (Words Without Borders, November 2011).

“Bird’s Nest” by Aurora Arias (Words Without Borders, November 2011).

2 poems by José Marmól (Words Without Borders, November 2011). Deus ex machina; Invention of the Day.

4 poems by José Marmól (Asypmtote, April 2011).

excerpt from “Tales of the Autumn in Gerona” from Tres by Roberto Bolaño (Words Without Borders, March 2010).

“Hunger” by Yasser Abdel-Latif (PEN America 12: Correspondences, 2010).

“Colors” by Aida Bahr (Zafra Lit, 7/7/2010).

“Not Without Seeing Snow” by Mabel Cuesta (Zafra Lit, 1/25/2010).

“Mantra for Mahmoud Darwish” by Jack Hirschmann (translated from French) (Human Architecture, v. 7, 2009).

Essays

Review of The FSG Book of Twentieth Century Latin American Poetry, edited by Ilan Stavens (Quarterly Conversation, Issue 24, 6/6/11)

Review of Praises & Offenses: Three Women Poets from the Dominican Republic, translated and edited by Judith Kerman (Quarterly Conversation, Issue 23, 3/7/2011)

Review of engulf — enkindle by Anja Utler, translated by Kurt Beals (Three Percent, 2/9/2011)

Review of Birds for a Demolition by Manoel de Barros, translated by Idra Novey (Three Percent, 12/10/2010)

Review of Cipango by Tomás Harris, translated by Daniel Shapiro (Quarterly Conversation, Issue 22, 12/6/2010)

Review of Edward Hopper by Ernest Farrés, translated by Lawrence Venuti (Three Percent, 1/7/2010)

“The Geography of Poetry: Mahmoud Darwish and Postnational Identity” (Human Architecture, v. 7, 2009)

Review of Poem of the Deep Song by Federico García Lorca, translated by Ralph Angel (Zoland Poetry, vol. 2 2007 )

“Testament,” Conscience, Consequence: Reflections on Father Daniel Berrigan (Arrowsmith Press, 2006)