Social Poetry

Run run run. That's what twelve-year-old Annie loves to do. When she's barefoot and running, she can hear her heart beating...Thump-THUMP, thump-THUMP. It's a rhythm that makes sense in a year when everything's shifting: Her mother is pregnant, her grandfather is forgetful, and her best friend, Max, is always moody. Everything is changing, just like the apple Annie's been assigned to draw a hundred times.

On the night of October 6, 1998, a gay 21-year-old University of Wyoming student named Matthew Shepard was lured from a bar by two young men, then savagely beaten, tied to a fence on the outskirts of Laramie, and left to die. Five days later, Lesléa Newman arrived on campus to give the keynote speech for the University of Wyoming’s Gay Awareness Week. October Mourning is Lesléa Newman’s deeply personal response to the events of that tragic day and its brutal aftermath.

As we open up to life and love and each other, as we awaken from our dream of separation, we encounter not just the bliss of existence, but its pain, too; not only life's ecstasy, but also its agony. Healing doesn't always feel good or comfortable or even "spiritual", for we are inevitably forced to confront our shadows, fears, and deepest longings - those secret parts of ourselves that we have denied, repressed, or deemed "negative" and unworthy of our love.

La Voz del Maestro es una colección de ensayos filosóficos y reflexiones espirituales del aclamado poeta y escritor Gibran Jalil Gibran. A través de sus escritos, Gibran aborda una amplia gama de temas, incluidos el amor, la belleza, la libertad y la espiritualidad. Inspirado por sus propias experiencias y observaciones de la vida, Gibran comparte su sabiduría y visión del mundo, ofreciendo perspectivas profundas y provocativas sobre la existencia humana.

Cuba has fought three wars for independence, and still she is not free. Her people have been rounded up in reconcentration camps, where there is always too little food and too much illness. Rosa knows how to heal sickness with medicines made from wild plants. But with a price on her head for helping the rebels, Rosa dares not go out in the open. Instead, she turns hidden caves into hospitals for those who know how to find her.

With fun-loving rhymes and a curious mystery to solve, Bear's New Friend, from acclaimed children's author Karma Wilson, is sure to become a new favorite of kids everywhere. A warm and fuzzy reading from narrator John McDonough makes this a delightful listen for youngsters and adults alike.

One by one, the other birds fly into her tree, wanting to talk or to play, but the Go-Away bird just shakes her head and sends them all away. But then the dangerous Get-You bird comes along, and she soon realises that she might need some friends after all. The Go-Away Bird is a brilliant rhyming story from Julia Donaldson, author of The Gruffalo, and the award-winning Catherine Rayner.

From the bestselling author of What the Road Said, Cleo Wade’s next heartfelt book is a love letter to the infinite potential of the future, expressing the many hopes and dreams we hold for our children and ourselves. This book is an important reminder that, above all, what we wish for everyone’s precious life is that they can love and be loved.

When a teacher asks her class what one thing they would save in an emergency, some students know the answer right away. Others come to their decisions more slowly. And some change their minds when they hear their classmates’ responses. A lively dialog ignites as the students discover unexpected facets of one another - and themselves. With her ear for authentic dialog and knowledge of tweens’ priorities and emotions, Linda Sue Park brings the varied voices of an inclusive classroom to life through carefully honed, engaging, and instantly accessible verse.

For the past decade, Lemn Sissay has composed a short poem as dawn breaks each morning. Life-affirming, witty and full of wonder, these poems chronicle his own battle with the dark and are fuelled by resilience and defiant joy. Let the Light Pour In is a collection of the best of these poems, and a book celebrating this morning practice.

This dynamic collection of Black voices, performed by Tony and Grammy Award-winning actor, rapper, and producer Daveed Diggs and Emmy Award-winning writer, creator, producer, and actor Lena Waithe, works like an incantation of origin, healing, and imagination. Born from a series of conceptual art exhibitions, the perspectives gathered here are nowhere near monochromatic.

But while some days can feel more sad than happy, there's always a bright spot on the horizon. Anna Dewdney and Judy Schachner perfectly blend rhyme, humor, and comfort to show readers the way out of a tough spot--no matter if it's big or small.

The gym is where Claire shines and she’s on her way to qualifying for the state championships. But at school, she’s known as a troublemaker—which is fine with her since it helps her hide her reading problem. Claire has never been able to make sense of the wobbling jumble of letters on a page. When a sympathetic principal wonders if she’s acting out because she may have dyslexia, she’s stunned. Claire has always assumed she’s dumb, so she’s eager to get evaluated. But her mother balks.

When Crab finds a new shell, he doesn’t want to share it with anyone - especially not a blobby purple anemone and a tickly bristleworm. But life in the rock pool proves tougher than Crab thinks and he soon finds he needs his new housemates. Sharing a Shell is a charming underwater tale of friendship and fun from the stellar picture book partnership of Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks, creators of What the Ladybird Heard. With brilliant rhythmic verse, charmingly read by Julian Clary, this is a firm favourite with children and parents alike.

Anikwa and James, 12 years old in 1812, spend their days fishing, trapping, and exploring together in the forests of the Indiana Territory. To Anikwa and his family, members of the Miami tribe, this land has been home for centuries. As traders, James' family has ties to the Miami community as well as to the American soldiers in the fort. Now tensions are rising - the British and American armies prepare to meet at Fort Wayne for a crucial battle, and Native Americans from surrounding tribes gather in Kekionga to protect their homeland.

Tired of life in a noisy city, a group of magicians gathers together and POOF!—they create their very own town. Being rather self-centered, they elect themselves to various positions in the town. When the voting is over, every magician has been elected to office; everyone, that is, except young Abracadabra Bartholomew Brown. Why not Bartholomew? Because he stutters, which causes some people to tease him and think less of him.

Now is an extraordinary time. Across the country, people are losing their loved ones, their livelihoods, their homes, and even their own lives to COVID-19. Despite the pandemic, countless protests erupted this summer over the recurring loss of Black lives. Reverberations of shock and outrage remain with us all. There's a Revolution Outside, My Love captures and articulates all of these roiling sentiments unleashed by a profound national reckoning.

Everyone feels, but not everyone proves it the same way. Some sing, others shout. Some rhyme, others curse. Some dance, others hit. These are examples of how we try to get people to understand, “I’m feeling this way, and I want you to know about it!” This book has some of my examples, and since I consider these healthy expressions, I hope they will help you find your own.

Biracial Woman Says Aren’t I a Black Woman Too details a biracial woman contemplating her identity regarding issues of race and society.

An ode to the girl with scrapes on her knees and flowers in her hair, and every girl in between, this exquisite treasury will appeal to fans of Dear Girl and I Am Enough and have kids poring over it to find a poem that's just for them.