AFRICAN-AMERICAN POETS

by Michael R. Strickland ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 1, 1996

This solid and sensible collective biography of ten African-American poets, from Phillis Wheatley to Rita Dove, is nicely done indeed. Librarians, teachers, and students will welcome this collection, with essays that are just the right length for citing in reports. Each essay outlines the life and covers the work of the poet, and each ends, appropriately, with a complete poem. Besides Wheatley and Dove, Strickland (Poems that Sing to You, 1993, etc.) includes Paul Laurence Dunbar, Langston Hughes, Gwendolyn Brooks, Amiri Baraka (whose adopted name is translated, erroneously, as ""blessed"" for Ameer and ""prince"" for Baraka--a simple reversal of the meanings), Haki R. Madhubuti, Nikki Giovanni, Maya Angelou, and Eloise Greenfield. The abbreviated format and concentration on the poets' words rather than on their lives occasionally leads to an oversimplification of their influences or of the difficulties they suffered, but this is still a great collection-builder.

Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1996

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 112

Publisher: Enslow

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1996

Categories: CHILDREN'S