The Shadow
CLIFTON FORGE, Va. (VR) – The Clifton Forge Public Library is pleased to present a book display honoring the late world- renowned poet, Nikki Giovanni.
Born in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1943, named after her mother, and growing up in Cincinnati, Ohio, Yolande Cornelia (Nikki) Giovanni, Jr., graduated with a degree in history from Fisk University, her grandfather’s alma mater.
A sickly child, Nikki missed a lot of school days which, she says in her online biographical sketch, “meant I could read the books that I wanted to read,” including books by Richard Wright, Langston Hughes, Paul Laurence Dunbar, and John Hershey.
Giovanni also grew up listening to a wide variety of music, from jazz to rhythm and blues, gospel spirituals, opera, and popular music. She wrote, “I feel so sorry for the kids who only hear one kind of music. Where do your dreams come from?”
She continued, “My dream was not to publish or to even be a writer; my dream was to discover something no one else had thought of. I guess that’s why I’m a poet. We put things together in ways no one else does.”
In time, Nikki began writing what was called “militant” poetry. While in college, she became involved in a writer’s workshop and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. She also became active in the Black Arts Movement, and “developed strong and lasting friendships with fellow writers James Baldwin and Sonia Sanchez.” The assassination of Malcolm X and the rise of the Black Panthers escalated her poetry to that of “the voice of many African Americans.”
Unable to locate a willing publisher, Giovanni formed Niktom Limited in 1970 and published her own books along with supporting other black female writers. Throughout her career, she published several collections of poetry and works of nonfiction as well as children’s literature. She also made multiple recordings, edited anthologies, and illustrated children’s books.
Exploring race, gender, social issues, and the African American family, Giovanni’s poetry was primarily political while also seeking to uplift black writers – especially women writers, and seeking to uplift the black experience in the arts.
Nikkie earned a long list of awards throughout her distinguished career. Naming only a few in summing up her life in her biographical sketch written at the age of 71, Nikki said, “I highly recommend old age; it’s fun. I have been awarded an unprecedented seven NAACP Image Awards which makes me very, very proud. I have been nominated for a Grammy; been a finalist for the National Book Award. I am very proud to have authored three ‘New York Times’ and ‘Los Angeles Times’ best sellers, highly unusual for a poet.
“I am a University Distinguished Professor at Virginia Tech. I don’t have a lot of friends but I have good ones. I have a son and a granddaughter. My father, mother, sister and middle aunt are all deceased, literally making me go from being the baby in the family to being an elder. I like to cook, travel and dream. I’m a writer. I’m happy.” Nikki Giovanni, at the age of 81, passed away in a Blacksburg, VA, hospital on December 9,
2024.
The book display, dedicated to her memory, also includes several of Nikki’s inspirational quotes. It will be on display at the Clifton Forge Public Library throughout February and March.
The library is located at 535 Church Street. For information on any library programs or activities, phone 863-2519.
