Bronx Masquerade

Here I go blogging about a book again! I am fortunate to have access to a wonderful selection of audiobooks, thank to my good friend Teri Lesesne. My most recent experience was listening to Bronx Masquerade, by Nikki Grimes. What a touching and creative book. Grimes’ poetry shines as the creations of young authors in a tough New York City high school English class who live for their Friday poetry raps. This is another book that is enhanced by listening rather than reading, because it is beautifully performed by a talented group of readers. The one caveat I would have to insert is that, as a former classroom teacher, I do find it a bit hard to believe that every student turned out to be a budding poet with a remarkable gift for putting thoughts on paper. That aside, the book does make the listener/reader care about these youngsters and their very realistic cares and yearnings. A quick Internet search proved that many teachers are emulating the fictional Mr. Ward and encouraging students to try their hands at poetry. And that is all to the good! Here are some URLs that build on the book:

http://www.tracievaughnzimmer.com/BronxMasquerade.htm

http://www.answerpoint.org/columns2.asp?column_id=772&column_type=CarolineParr