Posts Tagged: Between the Lines

I received this book for free from Nancy Paulsen Books in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

This thought-provoking companion to Nikki Grimes' Coretta Scott King Award-winning Bronx Masquerade, about a boy who takes a poetry class to become a better reporter, shows the capacity poetry has to express ideas and feelings, and connect us with ourselves and others.

Darrian dreams of writing for the New York Times. To hone his skills and learn more about the power of words, he enrolls in Mr. Ward's class, known for its open-mic poetry readings and boys vs. girls poetry slam.

Everyone in class has something important to say and in sharing their poetry, the class learns that everyone has challenges they must deal with--whether it is health problems; worries about aging out of foster care; being bullied for religious beliefs; or having to take on too much responsibility because of an addicted parent, each kid has a story to tell. As Darrian and his classmates get to know one another through poetry, they bond over the shared experiences and truth that emerge from their writing, despite their private struggles and outward differences.

Occasionally, when a book is written in verse(partly in this case) and I need to review it, I break out my incredibly rusty poetry skills and write a review in verse too. I usually try to imitate the style of verse in the book but you know, it isn’t always successful.

This Book

Between the Lines follows the story

of eight teens.

It seems like a lot and is occasionally overwhelming 

and yet . . . 

Nikki Grimes has somehow found the balance so it isn’t

too much.

Between the Lines is so ordinary and yet extraordinary in the way it tells the story of

eight different children and how they come to embrace the power

of poetry.

The story of these eight different children is bound

to take you on an emotional journey but at the end

you’ll come back having learned something new. 

Some people might not

love it.

But

you’ll likely get something out of it. 

About the Author

Nikki Grimes received the Coretta Scott King Award for Bronx Masquerade, and has also received four Coretta Scott King Honors. She has written more than fifty books, including The Road to Paris, Jazmin’s Notebook, the Dyamonde Daniel series, and the New York Times bestseller Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope..