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Make Me Rain: Poems & Prose
One of America’s most celebrated poets challenges us with this powerful and deeply personal collection of verse that speaks to the injustices of society while illuminating the depths of her own heart.
For more than thirty years, Nikki Giovanni’s poetry has inspired, enlightened, and dazzled readers. As sharp and outspoken as ever, this artist long hailed as a healer and a sage returns with this profound book of poetry in which she continues to call attention to injustice and give readers an unfiltered look into the most private parts of herself.
In Make Me Rain, she celebrates her loved ones and unapologetically declares her pride in her black heritage, while exploring the enduring impact of the twin sins of racism and white nationalism. Giovanni reaffirms her place as a uniquely vibrant and relevant American voice with poems such as “I Come from Athletes� and “Rainy Days”—calling out segregation and Donald Trump; as well as “Unloved (for Aunt Cleota)� and “”When I Could No Longer”—her personal elegy for the relatives who saved her from an abusive home life.
Stirring, provocative, and resonant, the poems in Make Me Rain pierce the heart and nourish the soul.
For more than thirty years, Nikki Giovanni’s poetry has inspired, enlightened, and dazzled readers. As sharp and outspoken as ever, this artist long hailed as a healer and a sage returns with this profound book of poetry in which she continues to call attention to injustice and give readers an unfiltered look into the most private parts of herself.
In Make Me Rain, she celebrates her loved ones and unapologetically declares her pride in her black heritage, while exploring the enduring impact of the twin sins of racism and white nationalism. Giovanni reaffirms her place as a uniquely vibrant and relevant American voice with poems such as “I Come from Athletes� and “Rainy Days”—calling out segregation and Donald Trump; as well as “Unloved (for Aunt Cleota)� and “”When I Could No Longer”—her personal elegy for the relatives who saved her from an abusive home life.
Stirring, provocative, and resonant, the poems in Make Me Rain pierce the heart and nourish the soul.
124 pages, Hardcover
First published October 20, 2020
137 people are currently reading
3695 people want to read
About the author
Nikki Giovanni
149books1,343followersYolande Cornelia "Nikki" Giovanni Jr. was an American poet, writer, commentator, activist, and educator. One of the world's most well-known African-American poets, her work includes poetry anthologies, poetry recordings, and nonfiction essays, and covers topics ranging from race and social issues to children's literature. She won numerous awards, including the Langston Hughes Medal and the NAACP Image Award. She was nominated for a Grammy Award for her poetry album, The Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection. Additionally, she was named as one of Oprah Winfrey's 25 "Living Legends". Giovanni was a member of The Wintergreen Women Writers Collective.
Giovanni gained initial fame in the late 1960s as one of the foremost authors of the Black Arts Movement. Influenced by the Civil Rights Movement and Black Power Movement of the period, her early work provides a strong, militant African-American perspective, leading one writer to dub her the "Poet of the Black Revolution". During the 1970s, she began writing children's literature, and co-founded a publishing company, NikTom Ltd, to provide an outlet for other African-American women writers. Over subsequent decades, her works discussed social issues, human relationships, and hip hop. Poems such as "Knoxville, Tennessee" and "Nikki-Rosa" have been frequently re-published in anthologies and other collections.
Giovanni received numerous awards and holds 27 honorary degrees from various colleges and universities. She was also given the key to over two dozen cities. Giovanni was honored with the NAACP Image Award seven times. One of her more unique honors was having a South America bat species, Micronycteris giovanniae, named after her in 2007.
Giovanni was proud of her Appalachian roots and worked to change the way the world views Appalachians and Affrilachians.
Giovanni taught at Queens College, Rutgers, and Ohio State, and was a University Distinguished Professor at Virginia Tech until September 1, 2022. After the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007, she delivered a chant-poem at a memorial for the shooting victims.
Giovanni gained initial fame in the late 1960s as one of the foremost authors of the Black Arts Movement. Influenced by the Civil Rights Movement and Black Power Movement of the period, her early work provides a strong, militant African-American perspective, leading one writer to dub her the "Poet of the Black Revolution". During the 1970s, she began writing children's literature, and co-founded a publishing company, NikTom Ltd, to provide an outlet for other African-American women writers. Over subsequent decades, her works discussed social issues, human relationships, and hip hop. Poems such as "Knoxville, Tennessee" and "Nikki-Rosa" have been frequently re-published in anthologies and other collections.
Giovanni received numerous awards and holds 27 honorary degrees from various colleges and universities. She was also given the key to over two dozen cities. Giovanni was honored with the NAACP Image Award seven times. One of her more unique honors was having a South America bat species, Micronycteris giovanniae, named after her in 2007.
Giovanni was proud of her Appalachian roots and worked to change the way the world views Appalachians and Affrilachians.
Giovanni taught at Queens College, Rutgers, and Ohio State, and was a University Distinguished Professor at Virginia Tech until September 1, 2022. After the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007, she delivered a chant-poem at a memorial for the shooting victims.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 285 reviews
December 11, 2024
I was so sad to read about the death of poet and activist Nikki Giovanni on Tuesday, December 10 (but was gratified to see that her death was among the top stories of the morning.). Nikki was one of my college professors and I was lucky to have known her. In her memory I purchased this book, one had had not yet read, and one which contains poems clearly written after her first cancer diagnosis. She will be much missed.
“After the Day�
the day like me
or is it the same as
such as I
wants to wrap myself
around you
hearing C-flat
against an F-minor
humming the lullaby
to the rhythm of you reading
that silly novel
you try to complete
each night
I rest in your rest
while the day
snuggles in
and sings me
to sleep
“After the Day�
the day like me
or is it the same as
such as I
wants to wrap myself
around you
hearing C-flat
against an F-minor
humming the lullaby
to the rhythm of you reading
that silly novel
you try to complete
each night
I rest in your rest
while the day
snuggles in
and sings me
to sleep
June 27, 2020
This beautifully written collection of poetry and prose is classic Giovanni. Touching on topics ranging from aging, to memories of childhood, to elegies for loved ones who have passed, to pride in black heritage, this collection is one of the venerated Giovanni's finest. She has a classic style that tackles universal topics in an accessible way. Her writing is strongest in her pared down stanzas that somehow manage to succinctly describe huge topics. The pieces that describe her childhood memories are beautiful and written with the perfect amount of nostalgia, never veering into being overly sentimental.
I would recommend this to people who enjoy clean, simple, beautiful poetry about classic subjects.
I would recommend this to people who enjoy clean, simple, beautiful poetry about classic subjects.
April 1, 2020
Thoughts soon.
January 14, 2021
This is the first poetry and prose collection I’ve read cover to cover in quite some time. And it’s my first book by Giovanni, though I’ve admired her poems in the past.
This is the kind of poetry I enjoy most of all - where it feels like the poet is speaking to you in a way that is profound but also accessible. There is such warmth in Giovanni’s style.
She writes about family, her Black roots and history, racism and resistance, childhood memories, getting old, food, hope, joy, injustice, grief.
My first of hers but definitely not my last. This is a collection I want to own.
This is the kind of poetry I enjoy most of all - where it feels like the poet is speaking to you in a way that is profound but also accessible. There is such warmth in Giovanni’s style.
She writes about family, her Black roots and history, racism and resistance, childhood memories, getting old, food, hope, joy, injustice, grief.
My first of hers but definitely not my last. This is a collection I want to own.
August 3, 2021
Some poems I really loved. Some I didn’t understand. Giovanni’s humor and whimsy are much appreciated. I also enjoyed the tributes to people and events. Deeply rooted in the present while still reaching back into the past.
February 6, 2021
I’ve been a fan of Ms. Giovanni ever since hearing Ego Tripping. In this new collection she is as sharp and smooth as ever. And the poems are heart piercing, you never fail to FEEL Nikki Giovanni. She has some personal pieces in here, highlighting her unapologetic Blackness. There are political pieces on white supremacy and Donald Trump. I’m not going to start highlighting favorites, because for me the whole damn collection is favored! Trust me on this one, you must have this on your shelf! I’ll end with this short excerpt from her poem Biography:
“B
I’m Here
And If I Mist
On Emotional Soul
A Weed Will
Grow
Make Me Rain�
“B
I’m Here
And If I Mist
On Emotional Soul
A Weed Will
Grow
Make Me Rain�
January 6, 2021
I wonder if she’ll ever write a book if poetry I don’t love. I love how she writes about food, about her grandparents, about what she’s learned, about what needs fixing.
March 26, 2023
Nikki Giovanni is one of my favorite poets. This collection consists of both poetry and prose on topics ranging from police brutality to the untimely death of one of the greatest hip hop artists to ever live, Tupac (yes, clearly, I am a fan). If you love poetry that is raw and real, I recommend it.
November 23, 2020
First - Nikki Giovanni. Need I say more? This collection is salt of the earth poetry - so beautiful, so complex, yet so simple as in why did I not make this connection before. Every page seems to be dog-eared waiting for a reread. If you've been afraid of poetry, start here.
April 5, 2025
Beautiful! Felt poetically autobiographical!
“I’m so glad I’m black…because we know salvation.� —Nikki Giovanni
“I’m so glad I’m black…because we know salvation.� —Nikki Giovanni
January 15, 2023
I am not a huge fan of poetry, as I've been the recipient of a lot of bad poetry (e.g., rhyming, simple and repetitive rhythm, melodramatic content). One of my close friends is a poet, so I've been forced encouraged to read and explore poetry.
I like poetry that makes me see the world differently. I especially like metaphor as a way of changing perspective. My friend, for example, talked about how her siblings were singing Christmas carols in a key that she couldn't sing and how that was a good metaphor for her family (not singing in the same key as they).
I like poems that make me feel more or differently.
Many of the poems in this collection left me cold. They would have been fun to write, but even when talking about something powerful and moving � many talked about race, violence, and family � they didn't move me. It felt like she was dancing around the emotion rather than stirring it to help us see or feel more clearly.
One of the advantages of a collection, though, is that while all poems don't move me, some will. Ferguson: The Musical did, as did And Yeah� This is a Love Poem (about the 1995 Million Man March). This is a portion of the latter:
I want to talk about the young brother . . . who just doesn’t understand . . . why everything he does . . . no matter how hard he tries . . . just never seems to come out right
How if he goes bowling and gets nine pins . . . that 10th pin would just stand there mocking the ball heading for the gutter
How if he bumps into someone on the street and says a simple “I’m sorry� someone else jumps in his face
but if he doesn’t say anything then someone says he is uncouth . . . or how sometimes people deliberately run into him . . . so he joined with other people like him . . . and instead of calling it a Benevolent Society or a Brotherhood or Rotarians . . . they call it a “Gang� . . . indicating it as a “nest� of “vipers� and terms like that indicating things
that we find dirty and unacceptable (pp. 116-117)
This is Nikki Giovanni reading on Spotify (if you still listen to Spotify). This is a of three young Black women reading it � with a lot of repetitions for emphasis.
The 2015 poem is somewhat different from the 2020 version. Poems grow, too.
I like poetry that makes me see the world differently. I especially like metaphor as a way of changing perspective. My friend, for example, talked about how her siblings were singing Christmas carols in a key that she couldn't sing and how that was a good metaphor for her family (not singing in the same key as they).
I like poems that make me feel more or differently.
Many of the poems in this collection left me cold. They would have been fun to write, but even when talking about something powerful and moving � many talked about race, violence, and family � they didn't move me. It felt like she was dancing around the emotion rather than stirring it to help us see or feel more clearly.
One of the advantages of a collection, though, is that while all poems don't move me, some will. Ferguson: The Musical did, as did And Yeah� This is a Love Poem (about the 1995 Million Man March). This is a portion of the latter:
I want to talk about the young brother . . . who just doesn’t understand . . . why everything he does . . . no matter how hard he tries . . . just never seems to come out right
How if he goes bowling and gets nine pins . . . that 10th pin would just stand there mocking the ball heading for the gutter
How if he bumps into someone on the street and says a simple “I’m sorry� someone else jumps in his face
but if he doesn’t say anything then someone says he is uncouth . . . or how sometimes people deliberately run into him . . . so he joined with other people like him . . . and instead of calling it a Benevolent Society or a Brotherhood or Rotarians . . . they call it a “Gang� . . . indicating it as a “nest� of “vipers� and terms like that indicating things
that we find dirty and unacceptable (pp. 116-117)
This is Nikki Giovanni reading on Spotify (if you still listen to Spotify). This is a of three young Black women reading it � with a lot of repetitions for emphasis.
The 2015 poem is somewhat different from the 2020 version. Poems grow, too.
November 3, 2020
Make Me Rain is a poignant collection of poems about racism, aging, Nikki's black heritage, and racial injustices. The writing is beautiful and profound.
Nikki Giovanni's poems swept me away. It brought up the sad truth that racism and racial injustice not only took place and continues to happen but that it continued to stay and affect so many people of color. I liked that Nikki didn't shy away from speaking her truth. There were so many poems that she described how black people were made to feel and how poorly they were treated yet she said she knew her worth.
As I was reading these poems I was sad for what so many black Americans have had to endure but also proud because of their strength. Their tenacity and positivity shined throughout. Although I don't read many poems or poetry books this book was probably one of my favorites this year. That is the beauty of this book. No matter if you are a fan of poetry, this book will stay with you.
I give Make Me Rain 5 stars. Nikki Giovanni's writing is so genuine, intentional, and breathtaking. It is one of my favorite nonfiction reads of the year. I think this book will move and affect many readers.
Nikki Giovanni's poems swept me away. It brought up the sad truth that racism and racial injustice not only took place and continues to happen but that it continued to stay and affect so many people of color. I liked that Nikki didn't shy away from speaking her truth. There were so many poems that she described how black people were made to feel and how poorly they were treated yet she said she knew her worth.
As I was reading these poems I was sad for what so many black Americans have had to endure but also proud because of their strength. Their tenacity and positivity shined throughout. Although I don't read many poems or poetry books this book was probably one of my favorites this year. That is the beauty of this book. No matter if you are a fan of poetry, this book will stay with you.
I give Make Me Rain 5 stars. Nikki Giovanni's writing is so genuine, intentional, and breathtaking. It is one of my favorite nonfiction reads of the year. I think this book will move and affect many readers.
June 14, 2021
Poetry is the most intense and concentrated form of writing, using words, metre, rhyme and format to express thoughts, feelings and ideas that can be fact or fiction. It gets at the marrow of truth and truth-telling using words to create an image, not a picture, of an idea. In expository/essay writing, a subject statement is presented, then followed with paragraphs that have content to support the subject. An essay takes the time and space to implore, convince and to tell you something. Poetry slams on the brakes and makes you reconsider what was written. It may very well make you look up words in a dictionary because you do not understand the meaning of the most ordinary words as used in a poem. Both forms have their times, places and can be potent when done well. Nikki Giovanni is just the writer who can capture thoughts, feelings and ideas in both poetry and prose, which is what she has done in her most recent book.
When looking at historical facts she does not pivot, instead she is an asteroid whooshing around giving us unimagined ways to think about past and recent history, racism, injustice, black history, white history, humanity's history, and the great big universe.
In “The Blues," “Some folk think the blues / Is a song or a way / Of singing / But the blues is history.� She comments that it is often thought to be how someone’s man or woman left them or took their money, but the real meaning is about being stolen, “And ignorantly sold / Probably not / Realizing to a new world / But the Lord is Good / And gave us a song / To tell our story.�
Two poems are especially relevant for the here-and-now. In "Vote", there are variations on a refrain, "It's a Vote / Saying you are / A citizen" interspersed with where, why, and who should be able to vote, and what was sacrificed in life and limb to validate, "All Men Were Created Equal." In "Raise Your Hand (in favor of immigrants)," she gives us some interesting questions about what we assume about immigrants, "how many of you sitting / here / think some woman of color / Black Brown Yellow White / woke up this morning thinking / "Goooolly ... I can go to the airport / and clean toilets?" / Raise your right hand." At the very end of this poem, she punches us with unvarnished truth-telling.
There are personal poems for an aunt, for a mother, for sisters, for grandmothers, for friends; poems about: rape, slavery, racism, fear; an essay about the reason to write told in a lyrical narrative style; poems about leaders and artists: Malcolm X, Toni Morrison, Ntozake Shange, Tupac, Barack Obama; poems about events: 1619 Jamestown, Ferguson: The Musical, The Million Man March; poems observing nature and the universe. A mischievous poem, "De-Planeing," about where we need to go when we get off an airplane, and what happens to Ms. Giovanni when she gets there.
A poem of pure joy and delight is “America� and not what you might expect, but a listing of foods in five stanzas that have a metre and beat to each stanza that ends in “America / America / My home / Sweet / Home." A fine first poem for a young person to memorize and share when we gather together with friends and families this spring and summer.
Reviewed by Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & Fiction
When looking at historical facts she does not pivot, instead she is an asteroid whooshing around giving us unimagined ways to think about past and recent history, racism, injustice, black history, white history, humanity's history, and the great big universe.
In “The Blues," “Some folk think the blues / Is a song or a way / Of singing / But the blues is history.� She comments that it is often thought to be how someone’s man or woman left them or took their money, but the real meaning is about being stolen, “And ignorantly sold / Probably not / Realizing to a new world / But the Lord is Good / And gave us a song / To tell our story.�
Two poems are especially relevant for the here-and-now. In "Vote", there are variations on a refrain, "It's a Vote / Saying you are / A citizen" interspersed with where, why, and who should be able to vote, and what was sacrificed in life and limb to validate, "All Men Were Created Equal." In "Raise Your Hand (in favor of immigrants)," she gives us some interesting questions about what we assume about immigrants, "how many of you sitting / here / think some woman of color / Black Brown Yellow White / woke up this morning thinking / "Goooolly ... I can go to the airport / and clean toilets?" / Raise your right hand." At the very end of this poem, she punches us with unvarnished truth-telling.
There are personal poems for an aunt, for a mother, for sisters, for grandmothers, for friends; poems about: rape, slavery, racism, fear; an essay about the reason to write told in a lyrical narrative style; poems about leaders and artists: Malcolm X, Toni Morrison, Ntozake Shange, Tupac, Barack Obama; poems about events: 1619 Jamestown, Ferguson: The Musical, The Million Man March; poems observing nature and the universe. A mischievous poem, "De-Planeing," about where we need to go when we get off an airplane, and what happens to Ms. Giovanni when she gets there.
A poem of pure joy and delight is “America� and not what you might expect, but a listing of foods in five stanzas that have a metre and beat to each stanza that ends in “America / America / My home / Sweet / Home." A fine first poem for a young person to memorize and share when we gather together with friends and families this spring and summer.
Reviewed by Sheryn Morris, Librarian, Literature & Fiction
May 11, 2025
accessed as a library audiobook, read by the author 😊
really nice to hear her speak her own words, about race, white supremacy, citizenship, rights, faith, love... �
I was moving slowly thru it... and it ended up unfinished cos the libraries wanted it back.
🌟 📖 🌟
this short review comes to you as part of the series: 'tidying up my shelves' 😉
really nice to hear her speak her own words, about race, white supremacy, citizenship, rights, faith, love... �
I was moving slowly thru it... and it ended up unfinished cos the libraries wanted it back.
🌟 📖 🌟
this short review comes to you as part of the series: 'tidying up my shelves' 😉
April 26, 2021
I’d expect nothing less.
💚💚💚 it’s a tops!!!
💚💚💚 it’s a tops!!!
January 18, 2022
Nikki did her thing. I especially loved & connected with “And Yeah� This Is A Love Poem�
June 5, 2020
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book. I love Nikki Giovanni, and have read many of her other works. I believe she is one of our finest living poets. This was not my favorite of her works. I've always appreciated her straightforward, practical style that is still layered with meaning. Many of the poems in this book felt extremely relevant to what's happening in early June 2020 with the Black Lives Matter movement and nationwide protests. I appreciate her voice and perspective on those issues. It was also nice to get some glimpses into her life, but on the whole, this just wasn't as moving a collection for me as some of her others.
June 7, 2021
I loved this! I read it via audiobook and hearing these words in Giovanni's voice just felt like balm for the soul. The poems are a celebration of black Americans and their culture but they also examine difficult subjects like slavery and police brutality where black bodies form the collateral damage. She made some of the darkest stains on America's history somehow beautiful with her seasoned, somewhat world-weary, melancholy tone.
There is a wonderful sense of humour on display here too. The piece where she talked about men's appendages disappearing due to being 'useless organs' - ha! I howled! This is the first collection from this author I have read but it certainly won't be the last.
There is a wonderful sense of humour on display here too. The piece where she talked about men's appendages disappearing due to being 'useless organs' - ha! I howled! This is the first collection from this author I have read but it certainly won't be the last.
November 4, 2020
I seldom read poetry. I will listen to this again before returning it to the library. Need I say more?
December 23, 2020
My first work by Giovanni and I wasn't disappointed.
March 18, 2021
When it comes to poetry, I tend to pick up Mary Oliver, whose work is very nature-oriented. Giovanni is more about history, politics, social commentary, and her own experiences as a gay WOC. I listened to this one, and it’s read by the author. Now I want to buy it. Because their are many thought-provoking moments I’d like to revisit. Her style just moves me.
November 14, 2020
Really liked these poems.
April 24, 2022
Ms. Giovanni always has something tender and wise to say. Reading her words feels to me like continuing a conversation we’ve been having since I began reading her work in middle school.
I love the recurrence of “quilt� and the theme of comfort as strength in this collection.
I love the recurrence of “quilt� and the theme of comfort as strength in this collection.
July 17, 2022
i've had an intellectual love affair with nikki giovanni for years. some might say it's because of our shared italian last names or my deep appreciation for the literature, poetry, and culture of the South, but it's also the provocative nature of giovanni's investigations into love, into being, into existing in this world.
some of the most captivating poems here are about various practices: quilting, riding the train, voting. in perhaps one of her most subtly political works, giovanni shines and makes me rain (tears).
some of the most captivating poems here are about various practices: quilting, riding the train, voting. in perhaps one of her most subtly political works, giovanni shines and makes me rain (tears).
April 19, 2023
She is the mother of words. She is our voice. She is unapologetically her truest self. She is Nikki Giovanni.
This timely collection of poetry and prose resonates at the deepest of levels, particularly for Black individuals. The way our Queen expresses Black experiences, human experiences is both affirming and profound. She just keeps getting better!
What an inspiration and gift to the world!
This timely collection of poetry and prose resonates at the deepest of levels, particularly for Black individuals. The way our Queen expresses Black experiences, human experiences is both affirming and profound. She just keeps getting better!
What an inspiration and gift to the world!
October 29, 2020
Another wonderful poetry collection from Nikki Giovanni that I know I’ll be rereading, especially Rainy Days.
July 2, 2020
Make Me Rain is a collection of short, simple, thought-provoking poems and essays about voting, slavery, love, and so much more. They are silly, sweet, questioning, beautiful, edgy...so many emotions, often at the same time. They are easily devoured, but will stay with you long after they're read.
This ARC was obtained though Edelweiss, with thanks to William Morrow/HarperCollins, in exchange for an honest review.
This ARC was obtained though Edelweiss, with thanks to William Morrow/HarperCollins, in exchange for an honest review.
December 8, 2020
5StarChick
August 30, 2020
Make Me Rain is my favorite Nikki Giovanni book to date. Very relatable topics. Many of the poems resonated with me. She writes about what is going on today. Issues we are dealing with in these most troubling times.
There is something about this body of work that feels a little more personal to me than her prior books. Maybe it’s because of poems like Seeds, a poem that confronts her own mortality.
Or maybe it’s the prose, which gave me
small pieces of her personal life. A quick appetizer, not enough to fill me up, but just the right amount to give me a taste and leave me wanting more.
Although I love the poetry, it’s the prose that really pulled me in. Giovanni’s very blunt and direct writing style captured my full attention. No sugar coating! Straight no chaser, just the way I like it.
She wrote poems for quite a few people. There are poems for Barack Obama, Ntozake Shange, Tupac, Toni Morrison among others. Also, Giovanni does not hold back her feelings as they pertain to the current president.
Make Me Rain is a searing body of work that is precisely tuned into current times. A tapestry of insights, emotions and experiences woven together to create a book worth reading.
There is something about this body of work that feels a little more personal to me than her prior books. Maybe it’s because of poems like Seeds, a poem that confronts her own mortality.
Or maybe it’s the prose, which gave me
small pieces of her personal life. A quick appetizer, not enough to fill me up, but just the right amount to give me a taste and leave me wanting more.
Although I love the poetry, it’s the prose that really pulled me in. Giovanni’s very blunt and direct writing style captured my full attention. No sugar coating! Straight no chaser, just the way I like it.
She wrote poems for quite a few people. There are poems for Barack Obama, Ntozake Shange, Tupac, Toni Morrison among others. Also, Giovanni does not hold back her feelings as they pertain to the current president.
Make Me Rain is a searing body of work that is precisely tuned into current times. A tapestry of insights, emotions and experiences woven together to create a book worth reading.
September 18, 2020
I received this from a giveaway. I am not usually a poetry fan, but always open to new thought. This book gave me some thoughts.
Let me start by saying.... Ms. Giovanni expresses her emotions and thoughts in an impactful way. I have not loved her life or would know what has made her feel the way she does.
I had a hard time with some of the passages. I felt they were racist and at time full of meaness and hate. It was clear her opinion of Trump. I believe in not sugar coating, but I do not creating more hurt. I felt this was close minded and not from a place of forgiveness and moving forward.
Like I said I don’t walk in her shoes, nor do I understand her struggles, but I do wish this book was more forward thinking of progress and not so much of past. We learn from the past to be able to be better.
Let me start by saying.... Ms. Giovanni expresses her emotions and thoughts in an impactful way. I have not loved her life or would know what has made her feel the way she does.
I had a hard time with some of the passages. I felt they were racist and at time full of meaness and hate. It was clear her opinion of Trump. I believe in not sugar coating, but I do not creating more hurt. I felt this was close minded and not from a place of forgiveness and moving forward.
Like I said I don’t walk in her shoes, nor do I understand her struggles, but I do wish this book was more forward thinking of progress and not so much of past. We learn from the past to be able to be better.
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