• “I say War,” Nothing Compares To You: What Sinead O’Connor Means To Us, Sonya Huber and Martha Bayne, eds., Signal/Simon & Schuster, 2025
• “Otoño,” Daughters of Latin America: An International Anthology of Writing by Latine Women, Sandra Guzman, ed., Amistad/Harper Collins 2023, pages 228-230
• “Runaways,” Pastures of the Empty Page: Fellow Writers on the Life and Legacy of Larry McMurtry, George Getschow, ed., University of Texas Press 2023, pages 131-138
• “The Moral Map,” Bending Genre: Essays on Creative Nonfiction, Margot Singer and Nicole Walker, eds., Bloomsbury, 2023, pages 317-322
• “Dia de Muertos,” Nepantla Familias: A Mexican-American Anthology of Literature on Families In Between Worlds, Sergio Troncoso, ed., Texas A&M Press, 2021, pages 38-49
• “La Chingona,” Mothers and Strangers: Essays on Motherhood in the Global South, Lee Smith and Samia Serageldin, eds., UNC Press, 2019
• “Chiefing in Cherokee: Commodifying A Culture To Save It,” Lauren Collins, ed., Best American Travel Writing 2017, Houghton Mifflin, 2017
• “Chiefing in Cherokee: Commodifying A Culture To Save It,” Michael Chitwood and Casey Clabough, ed., Best Creative Nonfiction in the South: North Carolina, Texas Review Press, 2017
• “The Road Trip,” Activating Democracy: The ‘I Wish To Say’ Project, Sheryl Oring, ed., Intellect Books, 2016, pages 71-73
• “No Man Nomad No More,” Amazing Place: What North Carolina Means To Writers, Marianne Gingher, ed., University of North Carolina Press, 2015, pages 114-124
• “The Miracle Tree,” The Sangam House Reader, Volume III: Other Worlds, Arshia Sattar, DW Gibson, and Rahul Soni, eds., Sangam House Books, 2015, pages 331-338
• “Code 500,” Best Travel Writing, Volume X, James O’Reilly and Larry Habegger, eds., Travelers’ Tales, 2015, pages 120-128
• “Pancakes at 2 a.m.,” Wise Latinas: Writers on Higher Education, Jennifer DeLeon, ed., University of Nebraska Press, 2014, pages 68-72
• “The Seed Book,” Family Trouble: Memoirists on the Hazards and Rewards of Revealing Family, Joy Castro, ed., University of Nebraska Press, 2013, pages 177-181
• “Road Sisters,” Count on Me: Heartfelt Stories of Sisterhoods and Fierce Friendships, Adriana V. López, ed., Simon & Schuster, 2012, pages 41-62
• “Latino Enough,” The Other Latin@: Writing Against a Singular Identity, Lorraine López, Blas Falconer, eds., University of Arizona Press, 2011, pages 15-20
• “Officially a Woman,” The Best of Travelers’ Tales 2009, James O’Reilly, Larry Habegger, Sean O’Reilly, eds., Travelers’ Tales, 2009, pages 11-20
• “La Extranjera,” Lengua Fresca: Latino Writers on the Edge, Ilan Stavans, Harold Augenbraum, eds., Mariner Books, 2007, pages 47-54
• “Abandoned in Uzbekistan,” Go Your Own Way, Faith Conlon, Ingrid Emerick, Christina Henry de Tessan, eds., Avalon/Seal Press, 2007, pages 40-49
• “Abandoned in Uzbekistan,” A Woman’s World Again, Marybeth Bond, ed., Travelers’ Tales, 2007, pages 65-73
• “Tibetan Truths,” Women’s Best Travelers’ Tales 2006, Lucy McCauley, ed., Travelers’ Tales, 2006, pages 102-107
• “Soviet No More,” Travelers’ Tales: Prague and the Czech Republic, David Farley, Jessie Sholl, eds., Travelers’ Tales, 2006, pages 88-95
• “Border Lines,” Bookmark Now: Writing in Unreaderly Times, Kevin Smokler, ed., Basic Books, 2005, pages 29-36
• “The Culinary Revolution,” Her Fork in the Road, Lisa Bach, ed., Travelers’ Tales, 2005, pages 129-134
• “After Midnight,” A Woman’s Europe, Marybeth Bond, ed., Travelers’ Tales, 2004, pages 181-190
• “The Tao of Bicycling,” The Best of Travelers’ Tales 2004, Larry Habegger, James O’Reilly, eds., Travelers’ Tales, 2004, pages 142-148
• “The Tao of Bicycling,” Travelers’ Tales: China, Larry Habegger, James O’Reilly, eds., Travelers’ Tales, 2004, pages 51-56
• “Tears From Turkey,” Travelers’ Tales: Turkey, James Villers, ed., Travelers’ Tales, 2004, pages 221-224
• “Sweet Thing,” Travelers’ Tales: Cuba, Tom Miller, ed., Travelers’ Tales, 2001, pages 46-50

• “The Agonies and Ecstasies of a Slow Book Project,” LitHub, 30 June 2025
• “What Happened When I Put Art Above Everything,” LatinaMedia.Co, 10 June 2025
• (Reprint) “Dia de Muertos,” Litmosphere: Journal of Charlotte Lit, Spring 2022
• “Does ‘Authentic’ Mexican Food Exist?” BBC Travel, 1 February 2021
• “Power Moves: The Baile Folklorico Dancers of Mexico,” Travel + Leisure, August 2020, pages 104-107
• “A Border in Blue,” Texas Journey Magazine, May 2020, page 30
• “Thy Kingdom Come,” 2019 Meridel Le Sueur Essay, Water~Stone Review, Vol. 22, Fall 2019, pages 204-213
• “The Saga Continues: How Iceland Became the World’s Most Literary Society— and Why That Status May Be In Jeopardy,” AirBnB Magazine, Winter 2018, pages 106-113
• “Spirit Animal,” Orion, Winter 2017
• “The Disciplined Utopia: A Month With The Odissi Dancers Near Bangalore, India,” The Believer, August 2017, pages 41-50
• “Chiefing in Cherokee: Commodifying A Culture To Save It, NC,” Virginia Quarterly Review, Fall 2016, pages 158-169
• “Release,” Conjunctions: Experiments in Collaboration (with Jennifer Curtis), The New River, Winter 2015
• “Music Without Borders,” Oxford American online, 23 April 2015, oxfordamerican.org
• “Art Against the Wall,” Oxford American, Spring 2015, pages 62-75
• Excerpt of “No Man Nomad No More,” Carolina Arts & Sciences Magazine, Spring 2015
• “Three Nations Crossing,” Witness, Winter 2014
• “Code 500,” The Oxford American, Fall 2013, pages 35-37
• Excerpt of “Road Sisters,” Latino Magazine, Winter 2012, pages 72-74
• “Life on Refinery Row,” Earth Island Journal, Summer 2012, pages 38-43
• “The Torture of Solitary Confinement,” The Wilson Quarterly, Spring 2012, pages 22-29
• “Teaching Under Threat,” Writing on the Edge, Spring 2012, pages 54-60
• “A Sort of Homecoming,” The Florida Review, Winter 2011, pages 113-131
• “The Michelangelo of New Mexico,” The Believer, November/December 2011, pages 3-9
• “Confessions of an Author Nomad,” Poets & Writers, November/December 2009, pages 105-108
• “Six Places Every Woman Should Go,” World Pulse, Winter/Spring 2009, pages 16-19
• “Officially A Woman,” Perceptive Travel, November 2008
• “Bad Mexican,” Texas Monthly Magazine, August 2008, pages 92-98
• “Malaleche, Spoiled Milk,” World Literature Today, May 2008, pages 34-37
• “Lessons From The Bloc,” Bitch, Winter 2005, pages 62-63
• “Tears from Turkey,” World Pulse Magazine, Winter 2004, pages 64-65
• “Truths in Tibet,” Many Mountains Moving, Vol IV, Number 3, January 2002, pages 195-199
• “Identity Trek: Becoming Latina,” Latina Magazine, December 2001, page 64
• “Wanderlust,” Latina Magazine, September 1999, pages 120-122

• A Map of Future Ruins by Lauren Markham, The Los Angeles Review of Books, 23 February 2024
• “Violence and Bliss in Three New Essay Collections: Short List,” The New York Times Sunday Book Review, 4 December 2022
• On the Plane of Snakes: A Mexican Journey by Paul Theroux, The Washington Post, 14 November 2019
• “Megan Yankee Embodies the Agonies and Ambiguities of Assimilation,” IndyWeek, 3 June 2019
• Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli, Texas Observer, 15 February 2019
• The Line Becomes A River by Francisco Cantu, Texas Observer, 31 January 2018

• “Rebel Defends the Forgotten People of Texas’ Colonias,” Dallas Morning News, 12 September 2010, page 29A
• (Reprint) “Five Places Every Woman Should Go,” The Times of India, page 17, 26 February 2007
• “Having the Last Heehaw: Missy Elliot,” New York Times, 17 August 1997
• “Firing on Music Videos With a Satiric Pop Gun,” New York Times, 6 August 1997, page B8
• “Lost Souls and Others, All on the Bus,” New York Times, 21 July 1997
• “Finishing Touch For Creatures of the Night,” New York Times, 20 July 1997
• “Proof Man’s Belly Has a Higher Purpose Than Beer,” New York Times, 13 July 1997
• “A Match Made in Museum Heaven,” New York Times, 10 July 1997
• “Under Pickford’s Curls, a Determined Mind,” New York Times, 7 July 1997
• “Immigrant, Teacher and Now Filmmaker,” New York Times, 30 June 1997
• “First Vote on a President Since Soviet Collapse in 1991,” Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 11 June 1996, page A1
• “Dark Trend Since Soviet Days: Organized Crime,” Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 11 June 1996
• “Top Bun: In Fast-Food World, Quickness Counts,” Washington Post, 11 September 1995
• “Campus Crusaders,” Washington Post, 3 September 1995, pages F1-F5
• “Mortal Kombat’s’ Bloodless Coup: Kids Say Hit Martial-Arts Film Lacks Video Game’s Gory Details,” Washington Post, 28 August 1995
• “Dead End: Jerry’s Grateful Fans Keep the Love Alive,” Washington Post, 10 August 1995
• “The Remembered War: At the White House, a VIP Dinner for Korean ‘Brothers’” (with Donnie Radcliffe), Washington Post, 28 July 1995
• “Hitting the Ground Rolling: For Team Geo, Life’s a Real Road Show,” Washington Post, 17 July 1995
• “Undying Devotion: Cemeteries Turn Down Celebrities Whose Fans Won’t Let Them Rest in Peace,” Washington Post, 15 July 1995, page D1-D7
• “They’ve Found Their Calling: The Selling Points of Being a Telemarketer,” Washington Post, 11 July 1995
• “The Pickett Family Roundup; Cowboy’s Descendants Gather To Remember Trailblazing Kin,” Washington Post, 3 July 1995
• “The Long March to Recognition,” 22 June 1995
• “A Grab Bag Of Geniuses: MacArthur Winners Include Humanitarian Missing in Chechnya,” Washington Post, 13 June 1995
• “Sawed and Not Heard: Women Working as Magicians? Now That’s a Real Trick,” Washington Post, 12 June 1995