One Last Word: Wisdom from the Harlem Renaissance

 

Bibliography

Nikki Grimes. (2017). One Last Word: Wisdom from the Harlem Renaissance. Bloomsbury Publishing.

ISBN: 1619635542

Plot Summary

Nikki Grimes’ One Last Word: Wisdom from the Harlem Renaissance is a collection of poetry that connects the past to the present. She takes lines from famous Harlem Renaissance poets and uses one word from each line to create her own masterpiece. Nikki Grimes’ poems reflect the lives, struggles, and dreams of black youth. She wants to encourage her readers to find their voice and know their worth. Readers today who are facing discrimination and hardship can relate to this book and take away some time of encouragement. She reminds readers that words have power, and just because it is from the past does not mean it is not relevant or cannot be made relevant to today's world.

Critical Analysis

For this book, I had to do a little research. I started reading the book but ‌ understanding what “golden shovel” poem form meant. For anyone that is not familiar, the “golden shovel” poetic form was created by Terrance Hayes, and it is where the last word of each line in a new poem is a word from a pre-existing poem, arranged in the same order as the original. This form allows poets to pay homage to another poet's work while creating a new and unique piece. This new poem does not have to relate to the original poem. Nikki Grimes took the old and made a mixture of beautifully written present issues in black culture.  There are stories that people of all colors can relate to, too. The poem Crucible of Champions: Dina her struggle with dyslexia was short, but it said so much for everyone who struggles with this. These poems cover so much, and each one is beautifully written. This book covers so various emotions and parts of time: self-love, anger, Harlem Renaissance, inner racial dating, dreams, and so much more. These stories speak of resilience and are meant to empower the readers to own their voices, especially Black youth. She wants all readers to see the stereotypes of black lives and how she counters them perfectly. I enjoyed reading this book, but when I read it again, I will take my time reading one poem at a time to enjoy it more.

Review Excerpts

"One Last Word is the work of a master poet." —Kwame Alexander, Newbery Medal-winning author of The Crossover

From the New York Times bestselling and Coretta Scott King award-winning author Nikki Grimes comes an emotional, special new collection of poetry inspired by the Harlem Renaissance—paired with full-color, original art from today's most exciting African-American illustrators.

Awards and Recognitions

• Arnold Adoff Poetry Award for Middle Readers, 2018

• Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor, 2017

• Chicago Public Library’s Best Informational Books for Older Readers, 2017

• Claudia Lewis Award, Bank Street College, 2018

• International Youth Library’s White Raven List, featured at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair 2019

• Kirkus Reviews' Best Middle Grade Poetry, 2017

• Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award, 2018

• The Lion and the Unicorn Award for Excellence in North American Poetry

• Massachusetts Children’s Book Award List, 2018–2019

• Myra Cohn Livingston Award for Poetry from the Children’s Literature Council of Southern California

• NCTE Notable Poetry List, 2018

• Reading Beyond 2020, ALSC and The Children’s Book Council

• School Library Journal’s Best Books of 2017, nonfiction

• YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers

Connections

• Have students try and create their own version of a golden shovel poem.

• Research more about the Harlem Renaissance

• https://nikkigrimes.com/books/one_last_word/