Nikki Giovanni, renowned poet and activist, passed away yesterday (12/09/24). She was a prolific poet, and she won many awards, including the Langston Hughes Medal, the NAACP Image Award, and an Emmy Award (for the documentary Going to Mars). She even wrote several children’s books. If you’ve never read any of her work and want to get a taste of it, I’d suggest starting with the poems found on the Poetry Foundation page for her.
We also own many collections of her poems and her essays:
A Good Cry: What We Learn from Tears and Laughter
The Collected Poetry of Nikki Giovanni, 1968-1998
The Prosaic Soul of Nikki Giovanni
Conversations with Nikki Giovanni
Gemini: An Extended Autobiographical Statement on My First Twenty-Five Years of Being a Black Poet
I had the pleasure of hearing her read her poetry several times! I highly recommend listening to her read her own work.
Cotton Candy on a Rainy Day
A Poem of Friendship
Adulthood
Quilts