New Releases by Nikki Giovanni

A stunning visual homage to Black bookstores, featuring a selection of shops around the country alongside essays that celebrate the history, community, activism, and culture these spaces embody, with an original foreword by Nikki Giovanni. Black literature is perhaps the most powerful, polarizing force in the modern American zeitgeist. Today—as Black novels draw authoritarian ire, as Black memoirs shape public debates, as Black polemics inspire protest petitions—it’s more important than ever to highlight the places that center these stories: Black bookstores. Traversing teeming metropolises and tiny towns, Prose to the People explores a these spaces, chronicling these Black bookstore''s past and present lives. Combining narrative prose, eye-catching photography, one-on-one interviews, original essays, and specially curated poetry, Prose to the People is a reader’s road trip companion to the world of Black books. Thoughtfully curated by writer and Black bookstore owner Katie Mitchell, Prose to the People is a must-have addition to the shelves of anyone who loves book culture and Black history. Though not a definitive guide, this dynamic book centers profiles of over fifty Black bookstores from the Northeast to the mid-Atlantic, the South, and the West Coast, complete with stunning original and archival photography. Interspersed throughout are essays, poems, and interviews by New York Times bestsellers Kiese Laymon, Rio Cortez, Pearl Cleage, and many more journalists, activists, authors, academics, and poets that offer deeper perspectives on these bookstores'' role throughout the diaspora. Complete with a foreword by world-renowned poet and activist Nikki Giovanni, Prose to the People is a beautiful tribute to these vital pillars of the Black community.

A major new career-spanning selection from one of the world’s foremost poets, an international treasure, from 1968 to the present day Nikki Giovanni''s poetry has dazzled and inspired readers for more than sixty years. When she first emerged from the Black Arts Movement in the late 1960s, she immediately became one of the most celebrated and controversial poets of the era. Now considered a living legend, this is the first new selection since the late 1990s and offers readers a chance to be introduced to and to celebrate her incredible lifetime''s work. Giovanni’s poetry has always been a powerful expression of her ideas about love, race, politics and gender, but part of that power has also been the sensitive and intimate way Giovanni is able to bring to light the heart and soul of herself and her readers. Giovanni''s poetry speaks from and to the Black experience, with Black love, Black struggle and Black joy at the centre. Arranged chronologically and spanning the entirety of her career, this selection charts not only the development of a great poet but also of sixty years of American life, bringing together motherhood and revolution, political dreams and great loves, men, women, children and community, and shows Giovanni at her essential, profound best.

THE SWAN SONG by Kaye Graham tells a timeless tale of longing and love. It is a moving story about joy, gratitude, and the seasons of life that reminds us of the one thing that matters most: deep, abiding love, and the expression of the inseparability of love and loss that celebrates the gift of bringing forth beauty from pain.

In this lyrical picture book, world-renowned poet, New York Times bestselling author, and Coretta Scott King Honor winner Nikki Giovanni and fine artist Erin Robinson craft an ode to the magic of a library as a place not only for knowledge but also for imagination, exploration, and escape. In what other place can a child "sail their dreams" and "surf the rainbow" without ever leaving the room? This ode to libraries is a celebration for everyone who loves stories, from seasoned readers to those just learning to love words, and it will have kids and parents alike imagining where their library can take them. This inspiring read-aloud includes stunning illustrations and a note from Nikki Giovanni about the importance of libraries in her own childhood.

Inspired by Mao''s Little Red Book, the new Expanded Edition of The Proletarian''s Pocketbook comes full of quotes to inspire and teach the science of revolution to the oppressed and working people of the world, building a path towards liberation, socialism and justice. With teachings from more than 100 oppressed, colonized, exploited, successful and working revolutionaries from around our Earth, the Expanded Edition is bound to inspire the revolutionary spirit inside you and your comrades to educate, organize, and build the revolution! This new edition comes with even more quotes, more revolutionaries cited, a reading recommendation page, and a handful of posters and charts. All Power to the People, We''ve Got a World to Win! Full list of authors: Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin Mumia Abu-Jamal Sundiata Acoli John Africa Samir Amin Kuwasi Balagoon James Baldwin Toni Cade Bambara Willie Baptist Amiri Baraka Maurice Bishop James and Grace Lee Boggs Bertolt Brecht Safiya Bukhari Amilcar Cabral Berta Caceres Fidel Castro Aimé Césaire Combahee River Collective Angela Davis Dialego Dimitrov DMX Frederick Douglass W.E.B. Du Bois Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz Friedrich Engels Zhou Enlai Frantz Fanon Kiran Fatima Silvia Federici Les Feinberg Clara Fraser Paulo Freire Anuradha Ghandy Nikki Giovanni Antonio Gramsci Che Guevara Fred Hampton Kathleen Hanna Harry Haywood Ho Chi Min bell hooks Enver Hoxha Dolores Ibarruri Kim Il-Sung George Jackson Jonathan Jackson Marsha P. Johnson Claudia Jones Frida Kahlo Ghasson Kanafani Leila Khaled Martin Luther King, Jr. Alexandra Kollantai L.A. Research Group Vladimir Lenin Audre Lorde Rosa Luxemburg Nelson Mandela Mao Tse-Tung Manning Marable Sub Marcos José Mariátegui Carlos Marighella Bob Marley Karl Marx Charu Mazumdar Chico Mendes Evo Morales Toni Morrison Fred Moten Huey P. Newton Kwame Nkrumah Julius Nyerere Nyurba Lola Olufemi Michael Parenti Leonard Peltier Rashid The Red Nation Paul Robeson Walter Rodney Arundhati Roy J. Sakai Thomas Sankara Lucia Sánchez Saornil Bobby Seale Chief Seattle Assata Shakur Tupac Shakur Nina Simone Bhagat Singh Joseph Stalin Sukarno Doris Tijeriino Sèkou Tourè Kwame Ture Dhoruba Bin Wahad Harsha Walia Lilla Watson Malcolm X Xi Jinping Malala Yousafzai

An edited transcript of the far-ranging conversation between Nikki Giovanni and Glory Edim (Well-Red Black Girl) at the Well-Read Black Girl Festival in November 2020. In it they cover poetry, Jay-Z, Black Lives Matter, feminism, and much more. This conversation captures an important moment in time and literary legacy.

A ground-breaking anthology celebrating Marvel’s beloved Black Panther and his home of Wakanda. Eighteen short stories penned by an all-star cast of authors such as Sheree Renée Thomas and Nikki Giovanni. T’Challa faces the gods of his parents. Vampires stalk Shuri and a Dora Milaje in voodoo-laced New Orleans. Erik Killmonger grapples with racism, Russian spies, and his own origins. Eighteen brand-new tales of Wakanda, its people, and its legacy. The first mainstream superhero of African descent, the Black Panther has attracted readers of all races and colors who see in the King of Wakanda reflections of themselves. Storytellers from across the African Diaspora—some already literary legends, others who are rising stars—have created for this collection original works inspired by the world of the Panther and its inhabitants. With guest stars including Storm, Monica Rambeau, Namor, and Jericho Drumm, these are stories of yesterday and today, of science and magic, of faith and love. These are the tales of a king and his country. These are the legends whispered in the jungle, myths of the unconquered men and women and the land they love. These are the Tales of Wakanda. Featuring stories by Linda D. Addison, Maurice Broaddus, Christopher Chambers, Milton J. Davis, Tananarive Due, Nikki Giovanni, Harlan James, Danian Jerry, Kyoko M., L.L. McKinney, Temi Oh, Suyi Davies Okungbowa, Glenn Parris, Alex Simmons, Sheree Renée Thomas, Cadwell Turnbull and Troy L. Wiggins.

One of America’s most celebrated poets challenges us with this powerful and deeply personal collection of verse that speaks to the injustices of society while illuminating the depths of her own heart. For more than fifty years, Nikki Giovanni’s poetry has dazzled and inspired readers. As sharp and outspoken as ever, she returns with this profound book of poetry in which she continues to call attention to injustice and racism, celebrate Black culture and Black lives, and and give readers an unfiltered look into her own experiences. In Make Me Rain, she celebrates her loved ones and unapologetically declares her pride in her Black heritage, while exploring the enduring impact of the twin sins of racism and white nationalism. Giovanni reaffirms her place as a uniquely vibrant and relevant American voice with poems such as “I Come from Athletes” and “Rainy Days”—calling out segregation and Donald Trump; as well as “Unloved (for Aunt Cleota)” and “When I Could No Longer”—her personal elegy for the relatives who saved her from an abusive home life. Stirring, provocative, and resonant, the poems in Make Me Rain pierce the heart and nourish the soul. "If there was a need for poetry that galvanized and inspired, there was also a demand for poetry that comforted and unified — and Ms. Giovanni provided on both counts." — The Washington Post

Newbery Award honoree Ashley Bryan has hand-selected a dozen of National Book Award winner Nikki Giovanni’s poems to illustrate with his inimitable flourish. There is nothing more important to a child than to feel loved, and this gorgeous gathering of poems written by Nikki Giovanni celebrates exactly that. Hand-selected by Newbery honoree Ashley Bryan, he has, with his masterful flourish of color, shape, and movement, added a visual layering that drums the most impartant message of all to young, old, parent, child, grandparent, and friend alike: You are loved. You are loved. You are loved. As a bonus, one page is mirrored, so children reading the book can see exactly who is loved—themselves!

In A Good Cry, Nikki Giovanni takes us into her confidence, describing the joy and peril of aging and recalling the violence that permeated her parents’ marriage and her early life. She pays homage to the people who have given her life meaning and joy: her grandparents, who took her in and saved her life; the poets and thinkers who have influenced her; and the students who have surrounded her. Nikki also celebrates her good friend, Maya Angelou, and the many years of friendship, poetry, and kitchen-table laughter they shared before Angelou’s death in 2014.

Showcases a legacy of pride, struggle, and triumph through consequential events and people, covering milestones and challenges met while highlighting the considerable contributions African Americans have made to the fabric of American society and culture. It provides insights on--and inspiration from--the influence and impact of African Americans on the United States in a broad range of endeavors from politics, education, religion, business, science, medicine, the military, sports, literature, music, dance, theater, art, film, television, and more.

From one of America’s most celebrated poets, Nikki Giovanni, comes this poignant collection of poetry that celebrates the simple pleasures of everyday life and the bonds we share with those closest to us. “This slim volume delights on every page. There are stories, imaginings, whimsy, and startling images which prove the poet’s power and her command of language . . . Anyone with a love of language will be delighted with this book and the continuing publication of America’s treasured poet.”—San Francisco Book Review The poetry of Nikki Giovanni has spurred movements and inspired songs, turned hearts and informed generations. She''s been hailed as a healer and as a national treasure. But Giovanni''s heart resides in the everyday, where family and lovers gather, friends commune, and those no longer with us are remembered. And at every gathering there is food—food as sustenance, food as aphrodisiac, food as memory. A pot of beans is flavored with her mother''s sighs—this sigh part cardamom, that one the essence of clove; a lover requests a banquet as an affirmation of ongoing passion; homage is paid to the most time-honored appetizer: soup. With Chasing Utopia, Giovanni demands that the prosaic—flowers, birdsong, winter—be seen as poetic, and reaffirms once again why she is as energetic, "remarkable" (Gwendolyn Brooks), "wonderful" (Marian Wright Edelman),"outspoken, prolific, energetic" (New York Times), and relevant as ever. "If there was a need for poetry that galvanized and inspired, there was also a demand for poetry that comforted and unified — and Ms. Giovanni provided on both counts." — The Washington Post

A resonant, powerful collection from one of America’s preeminent poets. In Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea, Nikki Giovanni turns her pen to nature and the environment, the might and grace of women, her battle with cancer, the relationships between mothers and daughters, the state of the nation, and more.

For the first time, the collected prose of national treasure Nikki Giovanni—featuring: Gemini: An Extended Autobiographical Statement on My First Twenty-Five Years of Being a Black Poet Nominated for the National Book Award, this is a journey—both private and public—through the trials and triumphs of 1960s America. Sacred Cows ... And Other Edibles Winner of the Ohioana Library Award, these fresh and wryly humorous essays explore some of America’s lofty institutions and the poet’s pivotal life experiences. Racism 101 This collection of essays contributes a vital and critical chapter to the debate on American national values.

From one of America''s most cherished and celebrated poets, a landmark collection of Nikki Giovanni''s early work! “Nikki Giovanni is one of our national treasures.”—Gloria Naylor When Nikki Giovanni’s poems first emerged during the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s, she immediately took a place among the most celebrated and controversial artists of our time. More than 50 years later, Giovanni still stands as one of the most commanding, luminous voices to grace America’s political and poetic landscape. This timeless classic brings readers Nikki Giovanni''s poems from her books Black Feeling Black Talk; Black Judgement; Re: Creation; My House; The Women and the Men; Cotton Candy on a Rainy Day; and Those Who Ride the Night Winds. Stirring, provocative, and resonant, these poems heralded the arrival of an indelible literary voice that resounds to this day. "If there was a need for poetry that galvanized and inspired, there was also a demand for poetry that comforted and unified — and Ms. Giovanni provided on both counts." — The Washington Post

In a career that has earned her accolades, honorary degrees, and awards from both fellow poets and everyday poetry lovers, Nikki Giovanni has established herself as a writer who can entertain and challenge, inform and inspire. Sometimes controversial, sometimes ethereal, but always beautiful, her poems move readers of all hues and generations. With Bicycles, she''s collected poems that serve as a companion to her 1997 Love Poems. An instant classic, that book—romantic, bold, and erotic—expressed notions of love in ways that were delightfully unexpected. In the years that followed, Giovanni experienced losses both public and private. A mother''s passing, a sister''s, too. A massacre on the campus at which she teaches. And just when it seemed life was spinning out of control, Giovanni redis-covered love—what she calls the antidote. Here romantic love—and all its manifestations, the physical touch, the emotional pull, the hungry heart—is distilled as never before by one of our most talented poets.

Our 16th president is known for many things: He delivered the Emancipation Proclamation and the Gettysburg Address.He was tall and skinny and notoriously stern-looking. And he also had some very strong ideas about abolishing slavery, ideas which brought him into close contact with another very visible public figure: Frederick Douglass. Douglass was born a slave but escaped in 1838 and became one of the central figures in the American abolitionist movement. This book offers a glimpse into the unusual friendship between two great American leaders. At a time when racial tensions were high and racial equality was not yet established, Lincoln and Douglass formed a strong bond over shared ideals and worked alongside each other for a common goal. The acclaimed team behind Rosa, winner of the Coretta Scott King Award and a Caldecott Honor book, join forces once more to portray this historic friendship at a unique moment in time.

Angry that his singing is unappreciated by the Ants who relied on his music to make their summer work easier, Jimmy Grasshopper decides to sue them for lacking respect and not acknowledging his usefulness in their lives. 35,000 first printing.

Startling and original, this new poetry collection covers such topics as RosaParks, Hurricane Katrina, and Emmett Till.

A biography about Rosa Parks, the Alabama black seamstress who refused to give up her seat on a bus and helped establish the civil rights movement.

Protected by her mother''s strong arms and the bonds of her community, a happy black girl carries her dreams as high as the sky.

In this "dazzling anthology" (Publishers Weekly), Daryl Cumber Dance has collected the often hard-hitting, sometimes risqué, always dramatic humor that arises from the depth of black women''s souls and the breadth of their lives. The eloquent wit and laughter of African American women are presented here in all their written and spoken manifestations: autobiographies, novels, essays, poems, speeches, comic routines, proverbial sayings, cartoons, mimeographed sheets, and folk tales. The chapters proceed thematically, covering the church, love, civil rights, motherly advice, and much more.

In a career that has spanned more than a quarter century, Nikki Giovanni has earned the reputation as one of America''s most celebrated and contoversial writers.Now, she presents a stunning collection of love poems that includes more than twenty new works. From the revolutionary "Seduction" to the tender new poem, "Just a Simple Declaration of Love," from the whimsical "I Wrote a Good Omelet" to the elegiac "All Eyez on U," written for Tupac Shakur, these poems embody the fearless passion and spirited wit for which Nikki Giovanni is beloved and revered. Romantic, bold, and erotic, Love Poems expresses notions of love in ways that are delightfully unexpected. Articulating in sensuous verse what we know only instinctively, Nikki Giovanni once again confirms her place as one of our nations''s most distinguished poets and powerful truth-tellers. In a career that has spanned more than a quarter century, starting with her explosive early years in the Black Rights Movement, Nikki Giovanni has earned a reputation as one of America''s most celebrated and controversial writers. Her mind-speaking work has made her a universal favorite and a number-one best-seller.The love poems-the revolutionary "Seduction," the whimsical "I Wrote a Good Omelet," and the tender "My House" to name just a few-are among the most beloved of all Nikki Giovanni''s works. Now, Love Poems brings together these and other favorites with over twenty new poems. Romantic, bold, and erotic, Love Poems will once again confirm Nikki Giovanni''s place among the country''s most renowned poets and truth tellers.

A collection of poems primarily about nature and the seaons but also concerned with chocolate and scary movies.

When Nikki Giovanni''s poems first emerged from the Black Rights Movement in the late 1960s, she immediately took a place among the most celebrated and controversial poets of the era. Finally, here is the first compilation of Nikki Giovanni''s poetry. It is the testimony of a life''s work from one of the commanding voices to grace America''s political and poetic landscape at the end of the twentieth century. From the revolutionary "The Great Pax Whitie" and "Poem for Aretha" to the sublime "Ego Tripping" and the tender "My House," these 150 mind-speaking, truth-telling poems are at once powerful yet sensual, angry yet affirming. Arranged chronologically, they reflect the changes Giovanni has endured as a Black woman, lover, mother, teacher, and poet. Here is the evocation of a nation''s past and present -- intensely personal and fiercely political -- from one of our most compassionate, outspoken observers.

From her conversation with James Baldwin, an interview that first aired on the television program Soul!, later published as A Dialogue. Also included is an excerpt from A Poetic Equation, her lengthy talk with the poet Margaret Walker. In this exchange of ideas and opinions with Walker a young poet new to the literary world assumes the role of spokesperson for a generation.

A pivotal work in Nikki Giovanni''s career, Cotton Candy on a Rainy Day is one of the most poignant and intorspective of all Giovanni''s collections. Moving from the emotionally fraught political arena to the intimate realm of the personal, the poems in this volume express a conflicted consciousness and the disillusionment shared by so many during the early 1970s, when the dreams of the Civil Rights era seemed to have evaporated. First published in 1978, this classic will remind her readers why they were first drawn to Nikki Giovanni and enthrall new readers who are just now coming to these timeless poems. As a witness to three generations, Nikki Giovanni has perceptively and poetically recorded her observations of both the outside world and the gentle yet enigmatic territory of the self. When her poems first emerged from the Black Rights Movement in the late 1960s, she immediately became a celebrated and controversial poet of the era. Written in one of the most commanding voices to grace America''ss political and poetic landscape at the end of the twentieth century, Nikki Giovanni''s poems embody the fearless passion and spirited wit for which she is beloved and revered. A pivotal work in Nikki Giovanni''s career, Cotton Candy on a Rainy Day is one of the most poignant and introspective of all Giovanni''s collections. Moving from the emotionally fraught political arena to the intimate realm of the personal, the poems in this volume express a conflicted consciousness and the disillusionment shared by so many during the early 1970s, when the dreams of the Civil Rights era seemed to have evaporated. First published in l978, this classic will remind her readers why they were first drawn to Nikki Giovanni and enthrall new readers who are just now coming to these timeless poems. As a witness to three generations, Nikki Giovanni has perceptively and poetically recorded her observations of both the outside world and the gentle yet enigmatic territory of the self. When her poems first emerged from the Black Rights Movement in the late 1960s, she immediately became a celebrated and controversial poet of the era. Written in one of themost commanding voices to grace America''s political and poetic landscape at the end of the twentieth century, Nikki Giovanni''s poems embody the fearless passion and spirited wit for which she is beloved and revered. "Nikki Giovanni is one of our national treasures. For decades she has offered her wit and wisdom, her bruising honesty, and, above all, her unbounded love through these poems as a healing for herself, her community, and her country." --Gloria Naylor

Forty-two poems written between 1970 to 1975.

Profiles the founder of the "New Town" movement and discusses the development of British new towns, the Radburn Idea, Greenbelt Towns, and the American new towns such as Reston and Columbia.