Speaking Volumes | Learn more about writer and poet Gwendolyn Brooks at Manatee County library
Chicago is home to many aspiring writers, including Gwendolyn Brooks, an African American poet, author and teacher. Although born in Kansas, Brooks spent her entire life in Chicago, a place that she closely identified with. Throughout her long career, she wrote many poems, starting when she was a teenager. In 1950, she was the first Black author to receive a Pulitzer Prize. Her poems were often about the struggles and celebrations of people in the South Side of Chicago.
The Manatee County Public Library holds several volumes of her poems, in addition to a biography and a few anthologies which feature her work. For books of her poems, a good place to start is with “Selected Poems”. This book of poems is a compilation of her first three collections as well as a selection of new poems. Many of the poems focus on the 1960’s civil rights movement and a few on specific historic events and issues.
If you are interested in reading a collection of her later and final poems, check out “In Montgomery: And Other Poems”. The poems range from a disturbing narrative set in a Chicago housing project, short verse-style monologues from children in Chicago’s South Side to an ode to Winnie Mandela.
Specifically for children, the book “Bronzeville Boys and Girls” is a classic picture book that explores the lives and dreams of children who lived together in Bronzeville, a neighborhood in the South Side of Chicago (also where Barack Obama lived for part of his life). It was illustrated by Caldecott Honor artist Faith Ringgold. Children can also get an introduction to this innovative author through the biography “A Song for Gwendolyn Brooks” by Alice Faye Duncan. This book includes some of her poems that are well suited for kids as well as colorful illustrations. Another recommended introduction of Black women writers for children is the book “African American Women Writers” by Brenda Wilkinson.
For a compilation of Black poets that includes Brooks, look at “The Vintage Book of African American Poetry: 200 Years of Vision, Struggle, Power, Beauty, and Triumph from 50 Outstanding Poets.” In the book’s introduction, an overarching theme is a “quest for identity and a belonging that will not compromise the self.”
For something a little different, listen to the audiobook “The African-American Audio Experience”. This compilation has a few of Brooks’ poems, plus excerpts from Richard Wright’s “Black Boy,” “A Raisin in the Sun,” recordings of Langston Hughes reading from select non-fiction works, and some Zora Neale Hurston poems. Several of the authors and works were also from Chicago’s South Side. I just listened to this audiobook recently and really enjoyed it.
For a glimpse into the life and work on one of America’s most compelling modern poets, the Manatee County Public Library has an array of resources to explore. Check out a Gwendolyn Brooks book today!
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