Books for National Poetry Month and Beyond

This beautiful cento poem from two award-winning creators about experiencing a forest with all of your senses will make the perfect read-aloud for nature lovers and curious explorers of all ages.

Into the forest, dark and deep,
With miles to go before I sleep . . .
Beneath the holy oaks I wander.
Here, O my heart, just listen!

From the Newbery Honor-winning author of Box: Henry Brown Mails Himself to Freedom comes a joyful picture book set to “This Little Light of Mine.” With a unique jacket and case cover, it’s the perfect gift for all of life’s milestones.

This little light reflects
an everlasting flame:
Hope that was passed down to you
by those who overcame.
A new sun is rising.

“Dream Variation,” one of Langston Hughes’s most celebrated poems, about the dream of a world free of discrimination and racial prejudice, is now a picture book stunningly illustrated by Daniel Miyares, the acclaimed creator of Float.

To fling my arms wide
In some place of the sun,
To whirl and to dance
Till the white day is done….

A poignant novel in verse in which, after a life-changing accident, one girl finds her way back to her life’s passion. From the Newbery Honor-winning author of Iveliz Explains It All.

All these months of staring at the wall?
All these months of feeling weak?
It’s ending—
I’m going back to fencing.
And then it’ll be…

From the three-time Coretta Scott King Honor winning author of The Skin I’m In comes a poignant story about a southern girl far from home at an elite girls boarding school in the north, who must find the courage to be herself and to dream of a brighter future, set against the backdrop of the great migration in South Philly.

You can be what you want in life.
Climb as high as you wish.
Nothing can stop you,
not even pedigree.

A girl discovers a connection between her home in the Philippines and her new home in the U.S. through a special garden in this middle grade verse novel that celebrates nourishment and growth.

It’s all about us! Join former U.S. Children’s Poet Laureate J. Patrick Lewis on a lyrical journey through the United States to experience the wonders of America’s people and places through 200+ inspiring poems and stunning photographs.

A powerful, genre-bending mosaic of fiction and poetry that celebrates the humanity, grace, and resilience of teenage New Yorkers riding out the pandemic—from the award-winning author of Chlorine Sky

Exploring the harsh reality of OCD and violent intrusive thoughts in stunning, lyrical writing, this novel-in-verse conjures a haunting yet hopeful portrait of a girl on the edge. From the author of Dear Medusa, which New York Times bestselling author Samira Ahmed called “a fierce and brightly burning feminist roar.”

An unflinching, honest novel in verse about a teenager’s journey into the slam poetry scene and the dangerous new relationship that could threaten all her dreams. From the award-winning poet and author of Home is Not a Country.