Oranges

“That Girl” by Gary Soto (1985)

This poem, also from Black Hair, details an adolescent boy’s crush on a girl in the library, echoing the infatuation the boy has for the girl in “Oranges.” In "That Girl," the male speaker has trouble concentrating on his studies because he keeps looking at an attractive girl nearby, making it an interesting companion piece to a poem in which boy and girl have a successful romantic connection.

“Saturday at the Canal” by Gary Soto (1991)

This poem's 17-year-old speaker and his friend hang around a canal and wish for an escape away from high school and the confines of their homes in Fresno. Like “Oranges,” this poem captures a specific landscape and time period in the speaker’s life. It, too, explores themes of poverty and hope.

“Pomegranate as My Heart” by Gary Soto (2009)

This poem, which appears in the collection Partly Cloudy, employs very similar imagery to “Oranges.” The speaker who doesn’t “have much to offer” (Line 1) holds a fruit in their hands while waiting for someone to “come out” (Line 13). The speaker wants to share the “jewels” (Line 9) of the fruit with someone who is “beautiful” (Line 5).