Ntozake Shange

Books by This Author

Coretta Scott

Illustrated by: Kadir Nelson
Age Level: 6-9

"Unflinching verse and elegant imagery combine in a powerful, evocative, picture-book portrait of Coretta Scott King. As stated on the cover, Shange uses poetry to recount Coretta Scott's life, from her childhood to her marriage with Martin Luther King, Jr. On the final page, the author offers a linear, prose biography, adding context to her more abstract references in the poetry." — Booklist

Ellington Was Not a Street

Illustrated by: Kadir Nelson
Age Level: 6-9
Handsome illustrations of Shange's evocative poem, "Mood Indigo," pay homage to the many African American icons and visionaries who came to the author's house when she was a child. From W.E.B. DuBois to Duke Ellington, the people we now know as luminaries are seen from the perspective of a young girl. This book is sure to generate discussion.

Freedom's a-Callin Me

Illustrated by: Rod Brown
Age Level: 6-9
Sophisticated poems, often in dialect, are accompanied by haunting paintings to chronicle a group of enslaved people escaping north to freedom. Older readers will most appreciate this sometimes (necessarily) harsh portrait of escape, slave trackers, and the trek north.