I listened to the audiobook and was blown away! Written as a poem, conversation, and story woven together. It’s an incredibly beautiful book.

I'm not normally a fan of poetry, but I really enjoyed this. Maybe it was the subject matter? Whatever the case, this needs to be read. Why aren't more people talking about this one?

So powerful. So important. So necessary. Gives voice to what is needed in kidlit right now. Zetta Elliott is a must-read author for me, and to have this collection of poems from her in these powerful voices is a great thing. I hope this will find its place in every high school classroom.

Zetta Elliott truly created magical poetry in this powerful collection. The poem “I Make Magic” explains,

but I
make magic
with the words
in my mind
I weave syllables
into silver

and she’s not wrong. These poems are not just sitting on the page. They demand engagement. They ask readers to feel something, to acknowledge truths, to take care of themselves, to celebrate, and to remember the names of those who are gone. Readers would be hard-pressed to ignore or be unmoved by these wonderfully crafted spellbinding messages.

For those who are leery of poetry because of bad experiences in academic settings, this book is fairly straightforward. Elliott’s poetry is never pompously obscure and in addition, she has included notes for many of the poems. At the end of the book she provides information about the inspiration for specific poems and/or clarifies some of the references. For her poem “Black Lives Matter” she mentions the “beloved trinity.” Her notes inform readers that the poem honors the founders of the Black Lives Matter movement, Alicia Garza, Opal Tometi, and Patrisse Khan-Cullors and that the final words are from Patrisse’s memoir When They Call You a Terrorist.

The fabulous artwork complements the words in the best way. The colors are bold, like many of the poems, yet do not distract from the text. The images and the design of the book speak to solidarity, strength, beauty, overcoming, remembrance, inspiration, affirmation and the list goes on. Many things here are also painful to witness. Names of Black women, girls, and femmes who have been victims of police or anti-black violence are included on the endpapers. There were far too many that were new to me which just emphasizes why the #SayHerName campaign is needed.

This collection will likely bring joy, pain, comfort, and many other emotions. Sometimes my heart felt raw, like with her poem about mermaids that deals with so many deaths, but she also managed to bring peace and even some healing. The collection leads readers through many emotions, but circles back and offers comfort, inspiration, and peace. The final poem is a blessing that I will be posting near my desk and will keep in my phone photo gallery. It’s a lovely parting gift. In her introduction Zetta Elliott claimed she has not thought of herself as a poet, but I would argue that she is most definitely a poet and a fantastic one at that.

Recommendation: Get it now. This poetry collection is addressed specifically to Black women and girls, but will certainly speak to the hearts and minds of anyone willing to listen. I highly recommend Say Her Name and hope to see it in the hands of many readers.

Say Her Name by Zetta Elliot is a collection of poems inspired by the #SayHerName movement launched by the African American Policy Forum. Topics ranging from self-love, black resistance, and police brutality, Say Her Name not only gives readers a glimpse into the mind of black women in America, but offers messages of hope and resilience. This is a quick read that I think many could pull insight from. I believe that collectively, the poems found in this book would make for great conversations among black women. I would definitely recommend to the young women in my life.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC of this title.

I'm not a huge fan of poetry but I really like this book because it drew from other poets both past and present and reminded us of all th brutality of Black me and women jn the last 10 years or so. However it wasnt overly sad and gave hope also by reminding Black women and girls of their power and magic. I really like the references to other poets like Angelou,Wheatley and Hughes as well as music by Nina Simone, and James Brown. It was very Black and I enjoyed it very much.

What a great collection of poems ... and a springboard to a great classroom project. Using well known poems as a model, students add their own voice to create poems on modern issues.

I thought this was such a great collection of poems from young ladies. I think this is very important for people to read and let their voice ring and tell their stories and stories of others. Some poems I liked were, "Free Them All", "Ascension", "Say Her Name", "Sacred", Mermaids", "Panther", Lullaby", and "Black Girl Miracle". This book comes out Jan 14 2020. I want a physical copy because the art work from the cover make the different art inside are going to be beautiful.

This was a beautiful, powerful collections of poems--many inspired by the work of powerhouse African American women like Gwendolyn Brooks, Lucille Clifton, Nikki Giovanni, and many more. Elliott samples some of the most powerful lines from hard-hitting pieces and weaves them into something all her own.

Touching on subjects of police brutality, the specific oppression of African American women, sexual assault, racial inequality, imbalanced media coverage, black resistance and empowerment--and on and on--this book is a must-have for my library.

Though the poetry was by itself emotional and enjoyable, I really like the Notes section that follows. Elliott talks about the inspiration and specific works behind many (all?) of her poems, and I was glad to see so many real-life incidents and people acknowledged. I'm for SURE making sure any student who checks out the book reads those final pages.

The only disappointment for me was that my DRC did not yet contain any artwork. This is pretty common, but I just KNOW it would have bumped up the intensity. I will definitely have to check out the physical copy when it comes to determine whether or not I'm correct.

Wow this beautiful book! I devoured it in a day. It's empowering, original and unique. You can interpret it almost any way, as a feminist text, as a new poetry style, as a political agenda. It's reminiscent of Rupi Kaur's writing so that's lovely. Some of my favorite poems in the book were: "For My People," "Mermaids," "Mic Check," "The Crown," "Anansi," "Women Like Us" and "Sonnet for Ida." The format looks scary at first, but the poems are worth it! It's a strange combination of Kaur and E.E. Cummings which somehow works. "For My People" was easily my favorite. It speaks to me as a reader straight into my heart. The lines that wooed me were: "if you take tea with hobbits/or call Hermione kin..." So amazing!

These poems hold a special place in my heart. I will definitely keep an eye out for Zetta Elliott's writing in the future! Not only can anyone read this book, but many people can relate to it. While her audience is as stated young black girls, I still found myself relating to her feminist writings. Elliott writes candidly and hopefully on mental health, gender rights, women supporting women and self-confidence.

Oh, my heart! Say Her Name is truly one of the most stunning collections of poems I’ve ever read. It is equal parts inspiring, uplifting, and heartwrenching.
I read this book three times in one night, trying to figure out which poem was my favorite (I couldn’t pick just one, FYI). I felt like each poem was written with me in mind. It was like Zetta Elliott could see me - my fears, my hopes, my strengths. Then, I was lucky enough to connect with the amazing author herself, who provided me with an ARC with illustrations. Wow. The illustrations by Loveis Wise are simple, yet bold and powerful. They truly add so much depth to the already gorgeous poems.

Say Her Name is a remarkable love letter to all of the beautiful, strong Black women in the world. Zetta Elliott - I cannot send enough thank yous for seeing us, believing in us, and lifting us up with these brilliant poems!

I have mixed feelings about this book. There were some poems that I taught were really good, but there were some that I didn't love as much. I need to say this book is an important read and it talks about being black and also the issues that go with that and unfortunately are still happening to this day ( like police brutality). Overall I gave the book 4 ⭐ and it didn't disappoint at all. Also I will be posting a review on the day the book comes out.

This is a fantastic collection of poems, and I love the variety of personas, characters, subjects, inter-textual aspects, themes, and global considerations. The attention to tone and placement is masterful, and the voices are authentic, developed, and individualized.

I will absolutely be teaching these works in the Young Adult section of my Children's Literature course.

The notes section will be particularly useful for younger readers, who may not be as well versed in some of the historical, interdisciplinary, and cultural connections.

A riveting collection to be sure. I can't wait for Elliott's next work -

This collection of haikus written for us by us is an amazing way to celebrate black girl magic. This book showcases the diversity of what it means to be a black woman. It features classics like Audre Lorde’s “A Woman Speaks” and Lucille Clifton’s “Won’t You Celebrate with Me” as well as modern haikus featuring topics that affect black women today.

When I read this book I am reminded of the line in F.U.B.U. by Solange that reads, “Don't feel bad if you can't sing along, just be glad you got the whole wide world.” While this book can be read by anyone, it’s impact is most greatly felt by the women it represents. This book feels like that, a warm hug from your mom, grandma, auntie, cousin, friend, or partner.

From an educational standpoint, the notes in the back make these haiku’s the perfect Segway into many timely topics that can be discussed in a language arts, history or social justice classroom. The notes give the reader a deeper look into the background of the haiku for which it’s written. I would recommend this book for Intermediate/Senior grades and well into the College/University level.