Grace Notes - by Naomi Shihab Nye (Hardcover)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

With themes of family, love, kindness, empathy, grief, growing up, and resilience, these one hundred never-before-published poems by the beloved poet, speaker, and teacher Naomi Shihab Nye will resonate with a wide audience.

National Book Award finalist and former Young People's Poet Laureate Naomi Shihab Nye's Grace Notes: Poems about Families celebrates family and community. This rich collection of one hundred never-before-published poems is also the poet's most personal work to date. With poems about her own childhood and school years, her parents and grandparents, and the people who have touched and shaped her life in so many ways, this is an emotional and sparkling collection to savor, share, and read again and again.

Review Quotes

"A powerful account of a mother's life, narrated in verse by award-winner Nye, the former Young People's Poet Laureate. Nye describes small meaningful moments from major events in the life of her late mother. . . . Through this intimate and compassionate exploration of one woman's life, readers receive an invitation to contemplate human interconnectedness. Beautifully written poetry about the butterfly effect of human experience." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"A rich, personal memoir in poems that traces the ups and downs of families with honesty, authenticity, and vulnerability. . . . Nye uses the power and beauty of words to express her feelings about her family and community and encourages children and young adults to do the same. While primarily focused on the theme of family, the poems also cover such topics as mental health, cultural expectations, war, immigration, refugees, family history, and the impact all of those forces have on personal identity." -- Booklist

"These poems offer tender memories of Nye's childhood with a chronically depressed parent, reflect on the different ways people mourn, and highlight observations of life's astonishing moments. . . . This autobiographical collection also includes Nye's backstory as the child of a Palestinian father and American mother, as well as a few mentions of the current war in Gaza. . . . Ultimately, these graceful poems are love letters to families past and present. Small but profound messages are revealed in a way only poetry can express. . . . A lifeline for astute poetry lovers." -- School Library Journal (starred review)

"Full of love, empathy, and compassion, these poems are thoughtful, honest, and uplifting." -- Horn Book Magazine