Make Me Rain

Poems & Prose

Nikki Giovanni

• Publisher: William Morrow
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9780062995292
• eBook ISBN: 9780062995308
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: Social Science Biographies
• Index: Literature

One of America's most celebrated poets challenges us with this powerful and deeply personal collection of lyrical poetry that speaks to the injustices of society while illuminating the depths of her own heart.

For more than fifty years, Nikki Giovanni's poetry has dazzled and inspired readers. As sharp and outspoken as ever, she returns with this profound book of social justice poetry in which she continues to call attention to injustice and racism, celebrate Black culture and Black lives, and give readers an unfiltered look into her own experiences.

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 voice in African American poetry 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. 

"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 profound collection, Giovanni masterfully weaves the personal and the political, the timely and the timeless.

• A Legendary Voice: After more than fifty years, Nikki Giovanni remains as sharp and outspoken as ever, delivering a powerful and unapologetic celebration of Black culture and heritage.
• The Personal and Political: Giovanni fearlessly confronts the national sins of racism and white nationalism while also sharing deeply personal elegies for the family who saved her from an abusive home.
• Timely Social Commentary: With unflinching clarity, these poems take on everything from segregation to contemporary politics, reaffirming Giovanni's place as a uniquely relevant American voice.
• Inspirational Verse: A stirring and resonant collection that challenges readers on injustice while ultimately piercing the heart and nourishing the soul with poems of love, family, and resilience.

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Dedication

Make Me Rain

No Pancakes Please

A Query

You Talk about Rape

Vote

At the Important End

And So It Comes to This

Quiet

America

Big Sisters

Poem

Everything but the Water

I Am Your Sweatshirt

Life on Mars

No I.D. Required

Song of Myself

Some Call It Love

The Blues

Love in All Colors

Unloved

1619 Jamestown (but not only)

In the Evening

For Pat Moss

After the Day

Malcolm X and the Guardian

Lemonade Grows from Soil, Too

For Therrell Smith

Leaves

One—Three; Two—Three; Three—Ones

Love

A Good Job

The 10th Planet

In Silence

Winter Homes

But Some of Us Stayed

Happy Mother’s Day

We Write

Train Rides Matter

Space Inside Mostly but Out

Changes

I Come from Athletes

Transitions

Our Own Path

De-Planeing

Seeds

Spring

When the Music Stopped

We Knew

6 May 2018 Approximately 9:00 P.M. or 10:30 P.M.

Raise Your Hand

The First Students of Color at Virginia Tech

Rainy Days

Submission for the Ebony Commemorative Edition on Barack...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• Make Me Rain
• No Pancakes Please
• A Query
• You Talk about Rape
• Vote
• At the Important End
• And So It Comes to This
• Quiet
• America
• Big Sisters
• Poem
• Everything but the Water
• I Am Your Sweatshirt
• Life on Mars
• No I.D. Required
• Song of Myself
• Some Call It Love
• The Blues
• Love in All Colors
• Unloved
• 1619 Jamestown (but not only)
• In the Evening
• For Pat Moss
• After the Day
• Malcolm X and the Guardian
• Lemonade Grows from Soil, Too
• For Therrell Smith
• Leaves
• One—Three; Two—Three; Three—Ones
• Love
• A Good Job
• The 10th Planet
• In Silence
• Winter Homes
• But Some of Us Stayed
• Happy Mother’s Day
• We Write
• Train Rides Matter
• Space Inside Mostly but Out
• Changes
• I Come from Athletes
• Transitions
• Our Own Path
• De-Planeing
• Seeds
• Spring
• When the Music Stopped
• We Knew
• 6 May 2018 Approximately 9:00 P.M. or 10:30 P.M.
• Raise Your Hand
• The First Students of Color at Virginia Tech
• Rainy Days
• Submission for the Ebony Commemorative Edition on Barack Obama
• Ntozake Shange
• The Gift of Nurses
• When I Could No Longer
• I’m Just a Poet
• Ladysitting with Grandmother
• Laughter
• Quilts
• Sister Althea
• A Short Bio of Nikki Giovanni
• Ferguson: The Musical
• Yes
• Vegetable Soup
• Cool
• Physics
• It’s Just Love
• The Circle
• The Counting Song
• A Bench
• Biography
• And Yeah . . . This Is a Love Poem
• Tupac
• About the Author
• Also by Nikki Giovanni
• Copyright
• About the Publisher