The 100 Best African American Poems ─ (But I Cheated)

Nikki Giovanni is an award-winning poet, writer, and activist. She is the author of more than two dozen books for adults and children, includingBicycles, Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea, Racism 101, Blues: For All the Changes, andLove Poems. Her children's book-plus-audio compilation Hip Hop Speaks to Childrenwas awarded the NAACP Image Award. Her children's book Rosa, a picture-book retelling of the Rosa Parks story, was a Caldecott Honor Book and winner of the Coretta Scott King Award. Both books wereNew York Times bestsellers. Nikki is a Grammy nominee for her spoken-word albumThe Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection and has been nominated for the National Book Award. She has been voted Woman of the Year byEssence, Mademoiselle, and Ladies' Home Journal. She is a University Distinguished Professor at Virginia Tech, where she teaches writing and literature.