Awards and HonorsHorn Book Fanfare - 2019
CPL Best Books - 2019
Bulletin Blue Ribbons - 2019 Michael L. Printz Award Honoree - 2020 Robert L. Sibert Award Honoree - 2020 Boston Globe-Horn Book Nonfiction Honor Book
Growing up with a mother suffering from paranoid schizophrenia and a mostly absent father, Nikki Grimes found herself terrorized by babysitters, shunted from foster family to foster family, and preyed upon by her mother's second husband. At the age of six, she poured her pain onto a piece of paper late one night—and discovered the magic of writing. Through subsequent years, her notebooks were her most enduring companions. In this remarkable memoir told in both poetry and prose, Grimes explores her harrowing past, showing how the power of words helped her conquer the hazards—ordinary and extraordinary—of life.
Crime: Punishment/Execution,Discrimination: Reference/Discussion,Discrimination: Religious,Discrimination: Sexism,Discrimination: Sexuality,Language: Moderate Language,Sexual Content: Contact Between Adult and Minor,Sexual Content: Mild Sexual Content/Themes,Violence: Gun Violence,Violence: Suicide,Violence: War/Harsh Realities of War