Poetry Friday: Hip Hop Speaks to Children

Giovanni, Nikki, editor. 2008. Hip Hop Speaks to Children: A Celebration of Poetry with a Beat. (Includes 1 Audio CD) Sourcebooks. For more information on the book, see here. (Also includes video of Nikki Giovanni talking about the book.)

I really enjoyed this poetry collection. There are 51 selections from 42 poets and performers; the CD contains 30 performances--many featuring the poets themselves reading their work. The poems, the artwork, the CD...all complement each other to create a wonderful experience. What can you find? Well, here's just a sampling: "Aloneness" by Gwendolyn Brooks, "Oh, Words" by Eloise Greenfield, "Harlem Night Song" by Langston Hughes, "Harlem Hopscotch" by Maya Angelou, "The Creation" by James Weldon Johnson*, "Rapper's Delight" by Sugarhill Gang*, "Everything is Everything" by Lauryn Hill, "The Rose That Grew From The Concrete" by Tupac Shakur, and many many more.

My favorite poem--well, the poem I'm getting ready to share for Poetry Friday--is...

Books by Eloise Greenfield

I've got
books on the bunk bed
books on the chair
books on the couch
And every old where
But I want more books
just can't get enough
want more books about
all kinds of stuff, like
Jackie's troubles, Raymond's joys
Rabbits, kangaroos, girls and boys
Mountains, valleys, winter, spring
Camp fires, vampires
Every old thing
I want to
Lie down on my bunk bed!
Lean back in
my chair
Curl up on the couch
And every old
where
And
read
more
books!

Roundup today is at Wild Rose Reader.

*Some selections are "From...."

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews