10 Collections That Celebrate the Voices of Black Poets
In many ways, Black poetry is synonymous with the American literary canon. From the colonial era to the Harlem Renaissance, the Black Arts Movement, and forward, the voices of Black poets have boldly proclaimed, confronted, and documented the triumphs and struggles of postmodernity, post-colonization, and racism while also capturing the joys of community, human closeness, and love with honest and searing wisdom. Through the stanzas of recent collections like American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin by Terrance Hayes, the illuminating correspondence of Audre Lorde and Pat Parker in Sister Love, and the diverse perspectives embodied by the pages of June Jordan’s soulscript anthology, the breadth and depth of the Black experience urges readers to bear witness to the longevity and vibrancy of the African diaspora and its people. Celebrate Black Poetry Day, October 17 — and Black poetry every day — with these collections that illustrate the beauty of Black poets’ voices.
In the opening pages of bone, Yrsa Daley-Ward urges readers, “I am the tall dark stranger / those warnings prepared you for.” Like a match, Daley-Ward’s ominous yet captivating intro crackles with a commanding energy. Her poetic prowess is luminous, and fierce even when wielded through two short lines. Throughout bone, Daley-Ward dares to explore her inner shadow, the contradictions of intimacy, and the many histories that have shaped her. Like Lucille Clifton‘s Two-Headed Woman and Audre Lorde‘s “For My Singing Sister,” Daley-Ward’s poetry compels its audience to bear witness to the complexity and limitless iterations of Black womanhood. Through poems like “when it is but it ain’t,” “it is what it is,” and “legacy,” bone confronts its reader with the task of looking within, of locating the harm, hopes, and desires that have defined their sense of self. bone‘s stanzas exorcise, invoke, and conjure. Daley-Ward’s poems will unfetter whatever binds you.
In every genre, Alice Walker’s words are a solace. The poetry of the visionary whose novel The Color Purple captivated millions on the page and in theaters across the globe continues to uplift and explore the way joy, even in times of darkness, can transform an individual and a community. Like the poems in her most recent collection, the revelations within Absolute Trust in the Goodness of the Earth will ease whatever ails you. Each poem is an antidote for the toxicity of supremacy, injustice, and the restorative power of rejecting chaos and embracing peace and compassion even in moments of lack. Walker reminds us to choose joy.
When Rap Spoke Straight to God extends the tradition of call and response, of spirituals, hymns, and hip-hop. Dawson’s verses are potent and timely. In poems like “This is me disillusioned with the mouth” and “That’s when I realized that breath was white,” Dawson examines what it means to live in a country that fails to reckon with its past, and the way trauma of racism and the resilience of the Black community can impact the mind, body, and soul. Dawson’s collection is prophetic and vibrant. Every poem feels like a testimony. Each stanza is holy. When she writes, “I see the exodus of light,” readers won’t just believe her. They’ll shout amen.
An homage to Toni Morrison’s legendary Sula, the iconic Nina Simone, and the historic Phillis Wheatley, the poems in Tiana Clark’s collection celebrate, dissect, and reflect on America’s past and present while painting a vivid portrait of the struggles and joys of Black embodiment. Reminiscent of Kiki Petrosino’s Witch Wife, Juliana Huxtable’s Mucus in My Pineal Gland, and Ai‘s Cruelty, Clark’s poetry unblinkingly looks at the historical and contemporary Black experience without sugarcoating it. Her earnest stanzas are affirming meditations that offer audiences a healing alternative to white supremacy’s myths. The poems in I Can’t Talk About the Trees Without the Blood are like marrow. Each line is as vital as oxygen.
In the second volume of the BreakBeat Poets anthology series, the voices of Black women poets are amplified. Featuring poems by Aja Monet, Safia Elhillo, Elizabeth Acevedo, Rio Cortez, Morgan Parker, and more, Black Girl Magic celebrates the contemporary canon of Black women poets throughout the diaspora. Through the editorial vision of Mahogany L. Browne, Idrissa Simmonds, and Jamila Woods, this radiant compilation of poems expands the definition of Black womanhood and its depictions within literature. A crucial title for readers and writers alike, Black Girl Magic is a gripping testament to the diversity and strength of the living Black literary canon.
The Vintage Book of African American Poetry is an extensively immersive survey of 200 years of Black poetry. Beginning with early greats like Frances E. W. Harper, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Anne Spencer to cornerstones of the Harlem Renaissance like Jean Toomer and Langston Hughes and more recent icons like Sonia Sanchez, Gwendolyn Brooks, Rita Dove, and Elizabeth Alexander, The Vintage Book of African American Poetry isn’t merely a primer to Black poetry, it’s a portrait of American history. The pages of this anthology are an affirmation of poetry’s unlimited potential to sustain and heal, even beneath the shadow of an oppressive nation.
In 1950, Gwendolyn Brooks made history by becoming the first Black writer to win the Pulitzer Prize. As a poet, novelist, and activist, Brooks’s life embodied the ethos rooted at the center of each of her poems. As readers devour the lines of “throwing out the flowers,” “The Bean Eaters,” and “Riot,” it becomes clear that Brooks — as Elizabeth Alexander suggests in the introduction to this collection — “is nothing short of a technical virtuoso.” Whether you’re new to Brooks’s work or a lifelong fan, The Essential Gwendolyn Brooks is a book that should be cherished and returned to often. It’s a vivid glimpse into the heart and mind of one of America’s greatest poets.
Much like those that came before her, U.S. Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith’s stanzas not only capture the American experience, but also investigate the contradictions that coincide with our nation’s history. In her most recent collection, Wade in the Water, Smith grapples with America’s legacy of racism and the Black community’s rich history of resistance and strength with lyrical and memorable lines. Through the lens of Smith’s poetry, the Declaration of Independence is deconstructed and reimagined, the voices of Black soldiers during the Civil War reach out from the past, and their brushes with death become illuminating and urgent epiphanies on mortality. A necessary read for times like these, Wade in the Water is an astonishing collection that will renew your strength to persist.
Writer and Civil Rights activist Maya Angelou left us with a literary legacy rivaled by few. Though her most sung work is likely I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, the insight and beauty and language offered up in this complete collection of her poetry makes for essential reading. The poetry within reflects upon Angelou’s life and wholly speaks to the experience of the African American experience.
Consider Kevin Young’s spot at various podiums as a poetry teacher and now from his desk as poetry editor of The New Yorker; certainly, he is no stranger to the form. His latest collection, Brown, is further testament to this fact, as he once again manipulates language in such a way that conveys with power and substance and pulse his experience of life, blending memoir and poetry in a way that will leave you breathless.
Originally published at www.signature-reads.com on October 17, 2018.
