[3] In the Chicago Review of Books, Olivarez stated that his understanding of translation, as well as its relationship to empire, stemmed from Don Mee Choi's writing.

[3] In Electric Literature, Olivarez shared that the specific format of layering English and Spanish beside one another was borrowed from Raquel Salas Rivera's poetry collection, antes que isla es volcan / before island is volcano.

[5][6] In a starred review, Publishers Weekly said that "The poet's sensitive and insightful voice allows these stirring poems to successfully explore the forces acting on love in a complex world, and the unshakable promise of understanding and belonging.

The fact that this collection is in Spanish allows me to share his work with my family and I hope that one day we discuss his poems, maybe before we start karaoke and sing Vicente Fernández songs.

"[13] On the Seawall was generally critical about the book, scrutinizing its "generic and dull" screeds against capitalism among other critiques of certain poems, but found it ultimately "fun": "Even at his worst, Olivarez will never be obscure—never distracted by the need to prove his sophistication.