Using James Baldwin's book on race, The Fire Next Time, as inspiration, Jesmyn Ward here collects poems and essays on race. Baldwin's 1962 book included a famous piece titled, "Letter to My Nephew," in which Baldwin addressed his nephew on the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation.
In this book, Ward gathered short stories, memoir pieces and poems to engage the question of race in the United States. Divided into three parts, the book includes ten pieces written specifically for this book. "Contributors include Carol Anderson, Jericho Brown, Garnette Cadogan, Edwidge Danticat, Rachel Kaadzi Ghansah, Mitchell S. Jackson, Honoree Jeffers, Kima Jones, Kiese Laymon, Daniel Jose Older, Emily Raboteau, Claudia Rankine, Clint Smith, Natasha Trethewey, Wendy S. Walters, Isabel Wilkerson, and Kevin Young"
I found this book to be powerful and thought-provoking. Reading through it, I found it was helpful to read one or two pieces, and then stop, think about them, and come back to the book. I feel it's important to read books like this, because as a reader, you gain insight into what other people's lives are like.
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