Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance

by Nikki Grimes

Overview

From Children's Literature Legacy Award-winning author Nikki Grimes comes a feminist-forward new collection of poetry celebrating the little-known women poets of the Harlem Renaissance—paired with full-color, original art from today's most talented female African-American illustrators.

For centuries, accomplished women—of all races—have fallen out of the historical records. The same is true for gifted, prolific, women poets of the Harlem Renaissance who are little known, especially as compared to their male counterparts.

In this poetry collection, bestselling author Nikki Grimes uses "The Golden Shovel" poetic method to create wholly original poems based on the works of these groundbreaking women-and to introduce readers to their work.

Each poem is paired with one-of-a-kind art from today's most exciting female African-American illustrators: Vanessa Brantley-Newton, Cozbi A. Cabrera, Nina Crews, Pat Cummings, Laura Freeman, Jan Spivey Gilchrist, Ebony Glenn, April Harrison, Vashti Harrison, Ekua Holmes, Cathy Ann Johnson, Keisha Morris, Daria Peoples-Riley, Andrea Pippins, Erin Robinson, Shadra Strickland, Nicole Tadgell, and Elizabeth Zunon.

Legacy also includes a foreword, an introduction to the history of the Harlem Renaissance, author's note, and poet biographies, which make this a wonderful resource and a book to cherish.


Acclaim for One Last Word
A Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor winner
A New York Public Library Best Kids Book of the Year
A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year, Middle Grade
A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, Nonfiction

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781681199443
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	01/05/2021
Pages:	144
Sales rank:	60,748
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 7.80(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

Nikki Grimes is a New York Times bestselling author and the recipient of the Children's Literature Legacy Award, the Virginia Hamilton Literary Award, and the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children. Her distinguished works include Southwest Sunrise, illustrated by Wendell Minor; the Printz Honor and Sibert Honor book Ordinary Hazards; NAACP Image Award nominee Planet Middle School; Coretta Scott King Award winner Bronx Masquerade; Coretta Scott King Author Honor books Jazmin's Notebook, Talkin' About Bessie, Dark Sons, The Road to Paris, and Words with Wings, which was also named an ALA Notable Book; and What Is Goodbye?, an ALA Notable Book. She lives in Corona, California.
www.nikkigrimes.com

Editorial Reviews

★ 12/07/2020

In this expansive introduction to Harlem Renaissance women poets, Grimes utilizes the Golden Shovel poetry technique, which Terrance Hayes conceived in homage to Gwendolyn Brooks, wherein one takes “a short poem in its entirety, or a line from the poem... to create a new poem using the words from the original.” The result is a thoroughly contemporary, compassionate collection in three parts (“Heritage,” “Earth Mother,” and “Taking Notice,”) that juxtaposes the work of poets—including Mae V. Cowdery, Alice Dunbar-Nelson, and Esther Popel—with Grimes’s innovative feminist remixes. Acclaimed Black women artists—such as Vanessa Brantley-Newton, Cozbi Cabrera, and Vashti Harrison—illustrate, making for an abundantly layered landscape of Black female experiences. Front matter includes a preface and introductions to the Harlem Renaissance and the poetic form; back matter includes an author’s note, poet biographies, sources, and an index. Ages 10–14. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

This book is exquisitely rendered. . . . a timely, healing mirror to a new generation of readers. . . . Black girls everywhere, this collection is salve and sanctuary.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“An abundantly layered landscape of Black female experiences.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

"A compelling reflection on gender, race, politics, and everyday life. . . . A striking collection of voices, who examine and celebrate the experience of Black women from the past and present. An excellent introduction to Black women writers who were ignored by history." - School Library Journal, starred review

"A compelling dialogue with the past." - BCCB, starred review

"[A] tour de force of a poetry collection . . . Grimes lays claim to an amazing artistic legacy on every page, her poetic rejoinders building a stirring call and response." - BookPage, starred review

“Remarkable. . . The art here is unified in its emphasis on portraying the beauty and uniqueness of Black girls and women. . . . This unique title is sure to spark thought and touch hearts.” —Booklist

“The eloquent and stirring voices of Grimes and her counterparts of the past resonate with passion, purpose, and resilience.” —The Horn Book Magazine

"Radiant mixed-media art bolsters Grimes's themes, full-page, full-bleed illustrations showcasing images of beautiful Black women, young and old, of all shapes, sizes and shades living their lives and being unapologetically themselves. The beautifully written Legacy will make anyone, regardless of age, sex or race, feel a sense of pride in being a citizen of the world." - Shelf Awareness

“One Last Word is the work of a master poet.” —Kwame Alexander, Newbery Medal-winning author of THE CROSSOVER, on ONE LAST WORD

“Gorgeous.” —The New York Times Book Review on ONE LAST WORD

“Timely and thought-provoking.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review, on ONE LAST WORD

“Grimes powerfully transposes the original poems' themes of racial bias, hidden inner selves, beauty, and pride into the here and now.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review, on ONE LAST WORD

“Innovative and powerful . . . a beautiful new homage to the Harlem Renaissance but also a moving reflection on the African American experience and the resilience of the human spirit.” —School Library Journal, starred review, on ONE LAST WORD

“Between the covers of this compact volume lies artistic, literary, sociocultural, and curricular gold . . . Mothers and elders exhort and reflect while young boys and girls plead and dream, reimagining the sorrows and dreams of the legendary wordsmiths into scenarios involving superheroes, bullies, peer pressure, poverty, and prom dates that young readers will relate to. This is simply essential for both personal and classroom collections.” —BCCB, starred review, on ONE LAST WORD

“The vibrancy of the Harlem Renaissance is illuminated in Grimes's provocative poetry collection . . . This enterprising and unusual volume not only introduces the Harlem Renaissance to young readers but also presents the challenge of a new way to write and enjoy poetry.” —The Horn Book Magazine on ONE LAST WORD

From the Publisher

★ 01/01/2021

Gr 7 Up—Grimes spotlights the work of lesser-known Black women poets of the Harlem Renaissance. The book begins with an explanation of the Harlem Renaissance and Golden Shovel poems. The collection is divided into three parts: "Heritage," "Earth Mother," and "Taking Notice." Golden Shovel poetry uses "a short poem in its entirety, or a line from the poem, called a striking line." The poem or striking line is then used "to create a new poem using the words from the original." Most of Grimes's poems incorporate lines of text or the entirety of a short poem into each verse. The text of the featured poet, which is used to create the new poem, is highlighted in bold type. The juxtaposition of Grimes's poetry and the original works provide a compelling reflection on gender, race, politics, and everyday life. Full-page, vibrant illustrations rendered by a variety of artists are included throughout, such as a woman whose head is a volcano for Lucy Ariel Williams's "Prelude" and "Slow Burn" by Grimes. Educators should note that the poem "Flag Salute" by Esther Popel describes lynching. Back matter includes brief biographies of the poets and artists, an index, and a list of sources. VERDICT A striking collection of voices, who examine and celebrate the experience of Black women from the past and present. An excellent introduction to Black women writers who were ignored by history.—Tamara Saarinen, Pierce County Lib., WA

School Library Journal

★ 2020-10-27
Grimes’ new collection of poems weaves a contemporary Black feminist impulse while recovering the underappreciated contributions of Harlem Renaissance women poets.

Winner of both the Children’s Literature Legacy Award and the ALAN Award, Grimes continues to deliver distinctively situated, heart-filled offerings that tie together generations of Black artistic excellence aimed at incubating positive social change. Here her focus turns toward less-well-known women poets of the early 20th century, women like Georgia Douglas Johnson, Jessie Redmon Fauset, Gwendolyn Bennett, Mae V. Cowdery, Anne Spencer, Effie Lee Newsome, Esther Popel, and Alice Dunbar-Nelson. To their poems included here, Grimes adds her own. These are done in the form of the Golden Shovel, invented by poet Terrance Hayes in homage to Gwendolyn Brooks, and they brilliantly resample the words of the women’s works. All, both collected and Grimes’, decidedly emerge from the experiences and worldviews of Black women and girls. They emphasize an ethos of care for oneself, one’s communities, and the Earth together for the possibility of a brighter tomorrow. Accompanying them are contributions from an all-star cast of Black women illustrators, empowering artworks that could be at home in a museum. This book is exquisitely rendered. After more than 77 books, Grimes remains as inspired as ever, drawing on the historic strength of Black women’s brilliance to give a timely, healing mirror to a new generation of readers. The ancestors are proud.

Black girls everywhere, this collection is salve and sanctuary. (author biographies, illustrator biographies) (Poetry. 9-adult)

Kirkus Reviews

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