The Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection CD [Unabridged] [Audio CD]

Nikki Giovanni (Author, Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 5, 2002

In a career that has spanned over three decades, Nikki Giovanni has perceptively recorded her observations of both the outside world and the gentle yet enigmatic territory of the self. When her poems first emerged from the Civil Rights and Black Arts Movements of the 1960s, she immediately became a celebrated and controversial literary figure. One of the most commanding voices to grace America's political and poetic landscape, Nikki Giovanni's poems embody the fearless passion and spirited wit for which she is beloved and revered.

From the sublime "Ego Tripping" to the tender "My House," Nikki Giovanni's mind-speaking, truth-telling poems compassionately evoke our nation's past, present, and future.

Read by Nikki Giovanni.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Poet, activist, mother, and professor, Nikki Giovanni is a three-time NAACP Image Award winner and the first recipient of the Rosa Parks Woman of Courage Award, and holds the Langston Hughes Medal for Outstanding Poetry, among other honors. The author of twenty-seven books and a Grammy nominee for The Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection, she is the University Distinguished Professor/English at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia, and an Oprah Living Legend.

From AudioFile

Nikki Giovanni blends the personal with the political in this engaging collection of poems written over 40 years, from the 1960s through 2002. They are poems that make one laugh and make one think. "Train Rides" celebrates the care received as a child from Pullman porters when she rode the train alone and sorrows over the generation of proud black men now in jail instead of on the job. "Hands: For Mother's Day" applauds the comfort and care offered by women's hands while prodding conventional wisdom --man didn't learn to walk upright to chase prey; woman learned to walk upright to carry the baby and the toddler and all the other provisions. Of course! Throughout, Giovanni shares thought-provoking stories about what led to the poems. She talks and reads fast, at first, almost too fast. Halfway through the first cassette, however, she slows down and gives the listener time to consider her words. An audiobook to be savored. A.C.S. © AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Caedmon; Unabridged edition (November 5, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060514299
• ISBN-13: 978-0060514297
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 4.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #373,698 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #40 in Books > Books on CD > Poetry & Drama
  • #42 in Books > Books on CD > Literature & Fiction > Poetry
  • #48 in Books > Books on CD > Literature & Fiction > Drama

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect introduction to Nikki's Poetic Art, April 6, 2009

By 

Bob (Texas) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection CD (Audio CD)

I was introduced to Nikki Giovanni on Bill Moyers Journal and found her such a delightful, interesting and insightful woman I had to get to know her better. This recording is a wonderful introduction to her art, her thought and her personality; and it is a gift to have the poems read by the poet. In addition to reading many of her poems, Nikki also offers many fascinating and occassionally extensive background remarks about particular poems, reflecting on events and people of the Civil Rights Movement and upon life, as only a poet of her stature can. I highly recommend this recording to anyone who already knows Nikki from her published poetry or to anyone who wants to meet a beautiful soul, full of wisdom, wit, and a heart for truth and justice.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars amazing, for the most part, February 5, 2010

By 

Wendy (Maryland/Massachusetts USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection CD (Audio CD)

This is a collection that I've had on cassette for a while but wanted as CDs so I could put it on my computer... not many college students have tape players. The quality is very good, and I love that Nikki Giovanni reads and comments on the poetry herself. However, when importing the CDs to itunes, I learned the track list that comes with them is slightly different than how my computer broke up the tracks; it wasn't hard to figure out what was different, based on the lengths of the tracks, but it threw me off a little bit.

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, April 12, 2009

By 

Joyce Gabourel (NYC,NY, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection CD (Audio CD)

She is one of the most brillant poets in the world as is her poetry.