"Inspired by the #SayHerName campaign launched by the African American Policy Forum, these poems pay tribute to victims of police brutality as well as the activists [championing the] Black Lives Matter [cause]."-- Publisher marketing.

"From the award-winning and critically acclaimed author of A Bound Woman Is a Dangerous Thing comes a new book of narrative in verse that takes a personal and historical look at the experience of Black girlhood. In the American imagination the contrasts between visibility and invisibility for Black girlhood are glaring. A recent report by the African American Policy Forum states that while Black girls make up only 16% of the female students in schools,...

For Angela, it came on the basketball court--while playing on the boys' team. For Penny, it came on a school field trip to the lake (making for some cringeworthy moments of humor). And to Layla's disappointment, it came at the start of her first fasting Ramadan, meaning that she won't be able to fast after all. Whether it spurs silence or celebration, whether the subjects are well prepared or totally in the dark, the young people in these sixteen...

"Who are we? We are a billion voices, bright and brave; we are light, standing together in the fight. Girls are strong and powerful alone, but even stronger when they work to uplift one another. In this galvanizing original poem by presidential inaugural poet Amanda Gorman, girls and girlhood are celebrated in their many forms, all beautiful, not for how they look but for how they look into the face of fear"-- Provided by publisher.