Review by Booklist Review
An eclectic mix of Black experiences fills this unmatched anthology that features both modern poets, such as Nikki Giovanni and Ibi Zoboi, and "the brilliant Black poets who are now ancestors" (e.g., James Baldwin and Gwendolyn Brooks). Following an introduction explaining the purpose of the collected works--to spotlight Black narratives that have been overlooked by Western society for their form and content--the compilation is divided into four major sections. The first, called "Livin'," looks at a range of life events in the Black community, from the rage, pain, and powerlessness felt when a police officer who murdered a 10-year-old Black boy was acquitted to loving one's Black hair. In the next section, "Gawd," the poems emphasize familial bonds, survival, and religion through such topics as generational trauma, lynching, and reclaiming Black women's bodies. The last sections, "Haunting Water" and "Magickal," turn to history, myth, and magic as they explore African American folklore. For instance, Kwame Alexander's "Middle Passage: Day One" presents the duality of water, which offers life and carried Black bodies to bondage, while L. Renée's "Grandmother Goddess" reflects on the importance of the matriarch in Black culture. Each poem is referenced as a track number, reinforcing the musicality of Black poetry, and concludes with a brief explanatory outro. A fresh canon for poetry studies.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Byas (I Done Clicked My Heels Three Times, for adults), Martin (And We Rise), and McBride (Gone Wolf) gather 37 writers to present an artfully arranged anthology that seeks to encapsulate the depth and diversity of the Black experience through poetry. Included alongside works by contemporary contributors such as Kwame Alexander, Nikki Giovanni, and Sonia Sanchez are poems by James Baldwin (1924--1987), Gwendolyn Brooks (1917--2000), and Audre Lorde (1934--1992), among others. "By placing poems written sixty years ago beside poems written today," the editors assert in an introduction, "words are able to reach across time and converse on the page." This time-spanning theme is evident in the curation of the entries, as well as within many of the poems themselves, as when Tony Keith Jr. writes, "My ancestor is a nineteen-year-old Black boy/ who wrote poems and read books and smiled at me/ when saying his mother was beautiful," in "Views for Damani." Brief outros by the volume's editors follow each poem, providing information about the selection, including illuminating historical context and thought-provoking structural analysis. This deep and complex assemblage of Black poetry culminates in a joyful, painful, and emotionally rich experience. Ages 13--up. (Jan.)
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up--An anthology of poems and stories on the Black experience from more than 35 acclaimed poets, including Kwame Alexander, Ibi Zoboi, and Nikki Giovanni. Their stories are personal, vivid, meaningful, powerful, tragic, and beautiful. The writers remember reveling in happy times with grandparents gone to glory; breaking the vicious cycle of generational trauma; admiring the heavenly glow of nature; persevering through the systemic hardships of being Black; migrating North during the harrowing era of Jim Crow; celebrating the kink, curl, and coil of so-called "unprofessional" hair; and lauding the colorful talents that birthed the Harlem Renaissance. There are also harder moments, past and present, such as the horror of a Black child gruesomely shot by a police officer while playing outside. This outspoken, unrelenting, open, joyful, and insightful book can be piercing and hard-hitting--stories of injustice, racism, abuse, and boldface smite for Black culture, beauty, and hair sting. But readers' emotions will bob between low and helpless to happy and high, and everything in between, given the writers' skill at painting images with words. Though most of the experiences penned in this anthology are rooted in Black culture, several poems reflect the overall human experience, with themes of grief and generational trauma. VERDICT An excellent collection of poetry that is an insightful read on the Black experience. A great choice for high school libraries and fans of honest and thought-provoking poetry.--Matia Edwards
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
An intergenerational collection of Black poetry guided by history and folklore. "Blacktime is time for chimeful / poemhood," writes Gwendolyn Brooks in this anthology's tone-setting introductory poem, "Young Afrikans." The following entries are accompanied by track numbers and brief outros offering context, a fitting arrangement for a book that's an "homage to the beauty and musicality of Black poetry." This collection seeks grounding in those who came before; each section--"Livin'," "Gawd," "Haunting Water," and "Magickal"--includes both enduring works by long-gone literary forebears (Phillis Wheatley, Claude McKay, Langston Hughes) as well as those of more modern poets (Nikki Giovanni, Kwame Alexander, Ashley Woodfolk). Highlights include Courtne Comrie's sprightly "10:32 p.m.," about the pleasures of living, while Audre Lorde's "Power" is full of fury over the state-sanctioned death of Clifford Glover, a Black child murdered by a police officer in 1973. The editors were intent on selecting poems that "reflect, inspect, comment, and retell" Black folklore. For example, they include "Follow the Drinking Gourd," a storied folk song used by the enslaved on the Underground Railroad, which juxtaposes nicely with editor Byas' "Enough Room," a lovely piece of lore on how the sun and moon came to live in the sky. This "patchwork quilt of poetry" is cohesive and curated with care, and it belongs in every library and classroom across the country. A rich, thoughtful anthology exploring centuries of Black poetry. (contributor bios) (Poetry anthology. 13-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
