The poetry of Nikki Giovanni has spurred movements, turned hearts and informed generations. She’s been hailed as a firebrand, a radical, a courageous activist who has spoken out on the sensitive issues that touch our national consciousness, including race and gender, social justice, protest, violence in the home and in the streets, and why black lives matter.

One of America’s most celebrated poets looks inward in this powerful poetry collection, a rumination on her life and the people who have shaped her.

As energetic and relevant as ever, this celebrated black poet now offers us an intimate, affecting, and illuminating look at her personal history and the mysteries of her own heart. In A Good Cry, she takes us into her confidence, describing the joy and peril of aging and recalling the violence that permeated her parents’ marriage and her early life. She pays homage to the people who have given her life meaning and joy: her grandparents, who took her in and saved her life; the poets and thinkers who have influenced her; and the students who have surrounded her. Nikki also celebrates her good friend, Maya Angelou, and the many years of friendship, poetry, and kitchen-table laughter they shared before Angelou’s death in 2014.

"If there was a need for poetry that galvanized and inspired, there was also a demand for poetry that comforted and unified — and Ms. Giovanni provided on both counts." — The Washington Post

In this lyrical and unflinching collection, Giovanni lays bare the experiences that shaped her voice.

Personal History: She recalls the violence that permeated her parents’ marriage and pays homage to the grandparents who took her in and saved her life.
Memoir in Verse: An intimate and illuminating look at the joy and peril of aging, the mysteries of the heart, and a life lived with courage and conviction.
Tribute to Maya Angelou: Celebrates a decades-long friendship, filled with poetry, kitchen-table laughter, and shared wisdom before her friend's death in 2014.
Social Commentary: A courageous, firebrand voice on the sensitive issues that touch our national consciousness, from social justice to why black lives matter.