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courtneydoss's review
5.0
I've been having trouble staying motivated to read lately, so I decided to pick up a book of poetry - something that could be thought provoking without the time commitment of a larger book. These poems were beautiful, and it was only after I read through a good chunk of them that I realized they were intended for children.
A few of them are simplistic, of course. Targeted at children, they would have to be. But there is a profoundness to several of his poems that transcends youth. The words are simple, the style is simple, but there is nothing simple about the messages. This book tackles hard topics like death and racism, slavery and the suffering black people have long endured. So many of these poems are stunning, and the most pleasantly surprising thing I got out of this book was a better understanding of the black Southern connection with Jesus and Christianity.
There has been a move away from Christianity in the black communities since the era of Civil Rights, the idea that it is the religion of the oppressor making it hard for modern folks to understand why formerly enslaved people and their descendants would cling to it so hard. In a single poem, Langston Hughes shows the reasons. He shows that Jesus suffered his whole life, that he endured hardship and he never got reprieve. His life ended in hardship, and yet he found heaven with his death and helps others find heaven too. For someone whose earthly life is as miserable as enslaved people's were there is a connectedness with the Christian messiah that white people might not relate to. As a white person, my relationship to Jesus was always as someone who suffered so that I didn't have to, whereas Langston Hughes shows that the black Jesus is someone who suffers alongside you. Who doesn't leave you alone in your pain, but joins you in it and promises an end to it. I didn't expect to get such a powerful theological lesson from a book of children's poetry, but it speaks to the skill of Hughes that it was able to occur.
While the topics in this book are a little dark for a young kid, I highly recommend it to any adult or parents wishing to teach their children about black history and racism.
A few of them are simplistic, of course. Targeted at children, they would have to be. But there is a profoundness to several of his poems that transcends youth. The words are simple, the style is simple, but there is nothing simple about the messages. This book tackles hard topics like death and racism, slavery and the suffering black people have long endured. So many of these poems are stunning, and the most pleasantly surprising thing I got out of this book was a better understanding of the black Southern connection with Jesus and Christianity.
There has been a move away from Christianity in the black communities since the era of Civil Rights, the idea that it is the religion of the oppressor making it hard for modern folks to understand why formerly enslaved people and their descendants would cling to it so hard. In a single poem, Langston Hughes shows the reasons. He shows that Jesus suffered his whole life, that he endured hardship and he never got reprieve. His life ended in hardship, and yet he found heaven with his death and helps others find heaven too. For someone whose earthly life is as miserable as enslaved people's were there is a connectedness with the Christian messiah that white people might not relate to. As a white person, my relationship to Jesus was always as someone who suffered so that I didn't have to, whereas Langston Hughes shows that the black Jesus is someone who suffers alongside you. Who doesn't leave you alone in your pain, but joins you in it and promises an end to it. I didn't expect to get such a powerful theological lesson from a book of children's poetry, but it speaks to the skill of Hughes that it was able to occur.
While the topics in this book are a little dark for a young kid, I highly recommend it to any adult or parents wishing to teach their children about black history and racism.
dfparizeau's review against another edition
5.0
It is so striking that these poems were meant to be shared with children. I wish more poets these days had the same passion for sharing themselves and their words with younger audiences that Hughes had.
losethegirl's review
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
4.25
I really enjoyed this collection and the illustrations truly added to the reading experience, whereas I usually find it hard to enjoy illustrated poetry.
jbuwalda's review
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
The Dream Keeper and Other Poems (1932) is a collection of poems by Langston Hughes, with illustrations by Brian Pinkney. This particular collection is geared toward children; it would be best for upper elementary through high school students. It is arranged thematically, with groups of poems about things like dreams, the sea, and the blues. The poems vary in length and complexity, and they illustrate Hughes' experience of Black America in the early 20th century.
This book would be a great to use in a study of the Harlem Renaissance, since it is from one of the leading figures, but it is still intended for children. Some of the poems follow a specific blues structure, so it could also be used as a mentor text to have students write similar poems as they develop their own voice.
This book would be a great to use in a study of the Harlem Renaissance, since it is from one of the leading figures, but it is still intended for children. Some of the poems follow a specific blues structure, so it could also be used as a mentor text to have students write similar poems as they develop their own voice.
cmleejim's review against another edition
4.0
These poems are empowering and sweet. Short and to the point, or long and written like a gospel they are accompanied by illustrations that make the poems stand out more.
I think it'd be hard to find a poetry book that is bad, but I guess what lost a star for me is that the book felt more geared towards children.
I think it'd be hard to find a poetry book that is bad, but I guess what lost a star for me is that the book felt more geared towards children.
courtneydoss's review against another edition
5.0
I've been having trouble staying motivated to read lately, so I decided to pick up a book of poetry - something that could be thought provoking without the time commitment of a larger book. These poems were beautiful, and it was only after I read through a good chunk of them that I realized they were intended for children.
A few of them are simplistic, of course. Targeted at children, they would have to be. But there is a profoundness to several of his poems that transcends youth. The words are simple, the style is simple, but there is nothing simple about the messages. This book tackles hard topics like death and racism, slavery and the suffering black people have long endured. So many of these poems are stunning, and the most pleasantly surprising thing I got out of this book was a better understanding of the black Southern connection with Jesus and Christianity.
There has been a move away from Christianity in the black communities since the era of Civil Rights, the idea that it is the religion of the oppressor making it hard for modern folks to understand why formerly enslaved people and their descendants would cling to it so hard. In a single poem, Langston Hughes shows the reasons. He shows that Jesus suffered his whole life, that he endured hardship and he never got reprieve. His life ended in hardship, and yet he found heaven with his death and helps others find heaven too. For someone whose earthly life is as miserable as enslaved people's were there is a connectedness with the Christian messiah that white people might not relate to. As a white person, my relationship to Jesus was always as someone who suffered so that I didn't have to, whereas Langston Hughes shows that the black Jesus is someone who suffers alongside you. Who doesn't leave you alone in your pain, but joins you in it and promises an end to it. I didn't expect to get such a powerful theological lesson from a book of children's poetry, but it speaks to the skill of Hughes that it was able to occur.
While the topics in this book are a little dark for a young kid, I highly recommend it to any adult or parents wishing to teach their children about black history and racism.
A few of them are simplistic, of course. Targeted at children, they would have to be. But there is a profoundness to several of his poems that transcends youth. The words are simple, the style is simple, but there is nothing simple about the messages. This book tackles hard topics like death and racism, slavery and the suffering black people have long endured. So many of these poems are stunning, and the most pleasantly surprising thing I got out of this book was a better understanding of the black Southern connection with Jesus and Christianity.
There has been a move away from Christianity in the black communities since the era of Civil Rights, the idea that it is the religion of the oppressor making it hard for modern folks to understand why formerly enslaved people and their descendants would cling to it so hard. In a single poem, Langston Hughes shows the reasons. He shows that Jesus suffered his whole life, that he endured hardship and he never got reprieve. His life ended in hardship, and yet he found heaven with his death and helps others find heaven too. For someone whose earthly life is as miserable as enslaved people's were there is a connectedness with the Christian messiah that white people might not relate to. As a white person, my relationship to Jesus was always as someone who suffered so that I didn't have to, whereas Langston Hughes shows that the black Jesus is someone who suffers alongside you. Who doesn't leave you alone in your pain, but joins you in it and promises an end to it. I didn't expect to get such a powerful theological lesson from a book of children's poetry, but it speaks to the skill of Hughes that it was able to occur.
While the topics in this book are a little dark for a young kid, I highly recommend it to any adult or parents wishing to teach their children about black history and racism.
jchant's review against another edition
5.0
I read this book ages ago, for a Black Writers class that I took in college. I recently saw an article in my alumni magazine about the professor I had for that class, John Wright, who recently retired. That got me thinking about all of the works we studied, and I focused most on Langston Hughes. I wrote a paper on this book and another, Montage of a Dream Deferred, and I really loved the experience, both reading the poems and writing the paper. It was very special to revisit Hughes' poetry with this collection. Now I want to read more!
My local library system has a "10 to Try" challenge again in 2019. The idea is to read a book in each of 10 categories during the current year. The category that this book fits into is: Read a book of poetry.
My local library system has a "10 to Try" challenge again in 2019. The idea is to read a book in each of 10 categories during the current year. The category that this book fits into is: Read a book of poetry.
bookwyrmknits's review
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
3.5
Some of these poems I enjoyed a lot. However, for some reason I missed the fact that this was a collection of poems for children when I requested the book from the library, and so it wasn't quite what I was expecting. There were still some really deep, intense themes here, but in some of them it felt like Hughes had pulled his punches in order to connect with his audience more. I guess I was hoping for more of the poems to hit hard.
That said, I did enjoy most of these at least a little, and some of them a whole lot. The illustrations are also a nice addition. My favorites tended to be on the longer side (compared to the rest of the poems in this volume) but the imagery in even the short poems was stellar.
That said, I did enjoy most of these at least a little, and some of them a whole lot. The illustrations are also a nice addition. My favorites tended to be on the longer side (compared to the rest of the poems in this volume) but the imagery in even the short poems was stellar.
serendipitysbooks's review
5.0
I’m sure I’m not the only one who doesn’t remember a great deal of what they were taught in high school. But one thing that has stuck with me is a poem by Langston Hughes. When I was looking for a book from the 1930s for the #10books10decades challenge, his poetry collection The Dream Keeper and Other Poems was the obvious choice. I found an audio version where Hughes not only read his poems but gave a little background introduction to them. That really added to my enjoyment and appreciation. Hughes is a master at packing a lot into a few words, especially his love of jazz and the everyday discriminations Blacks faced.