Paul Guest is one of my favorite poets. And while this isn't a speculative poetry collection, Guest draws on various nerdy subjects in his poetic language and imagery throughout many of the poems. One of the poems has a subtle Dune reference that took me a couple of rereads to really get it. He's definitely one of us.
Juxtaposing family dynamics with a zombie apocalypse, The Hanyman's Guide to End Times is equally hilarious and heartbreaking. I happened across the book by chance at AWP in 2025. Got to talk with the writer for a few minutes before getting it signed. He's an absolute gem.
This book has a soft place in my heart. I was visiting my grad school alma matre, and Margaret Rhee was a guest writer. During the visiting writers reading one evening, a friend and I were sitting in the back, softly comparing notes about the readers. When Margaret started reading the poetry from this book about a human and robot love affair, where some of the poems emulate coding, we squealed with delight. We were the two speculative writers in the room, and possibly the only two who really got what Margaret Rhee was going for. It's an awesome and delightful book.
Bingo squares: Small press, non-human protagonist (definitely from the voice of the robot), author of color.
For the next installment of my National Poetry Month recommendation series, I give you Many Restless Concerns by Gayle Brandeis.
This book is basically a novella in verse from the victims of the Countess Bathory. Brandeis invokes a chorus of the hundreds of young women tortured to death because the Countess Bathory believed their blood would offer her immortality. It's creepy, haunting, and yet offers moments of deep catharsis.