What's New with Nikki Grimes

We featured Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes in our February 2008 issue. The book, which won the Coretta Scott King Award, shared the poetry and voices of eighteen different students.

Since her spotlight at readergirlz, Nikki has released a multitude of books, including:
A picture book biography: Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope
More novels-in-verse: A Girl Named Mister, Planet Middle School, Words With Wings
A quartet of chapter books: Make Way for Dyamonde Daniel, Rich, Almost Zero, Halfway to Perfect
Forays into visual art: 6 exhibits, several sales, one 2nd Place Ribbon
A limited edition title: Journey: Poems for the Pulpit
...and she tells us there's more on the way! Congrats, Nikki!

Cover Stories: A Girl Named Mister by Nikki Grimes

A Girl Named Mister, by Nikki Grimes, came out last fall. Kirkus Reviews says, "This novel in poetry looks clearly at both teen pregnancy and struggles with faith. Mister is exceptionally well characterized...The language is intimate and immediate."

Diva Lorie Ann wrote about it recently on this blog (Nikki is a member of the readergirlz Circle of Stars) and the cover is one that I've stared at a bit in the bookstore, so I had to ask Nikki about the back story. Here she is:

"OMG, I am so in love with the current cover, I'd completely forgotten what it took to arrive at it! I had no musings on a cover when I wrote the text. I never do. But when it comes to covers, I definitely know what I do or don't like when I see it.

"I remember the original cover proposed to me (right), and I shudder. It featured a young girl who was too mature, and worldly-wise for Mister, and a very stilted image of Mary, which did not align with the fresh-faced young teenager I had in mind. In fact, I wrote Mary as though she and Mister were the same age, while the Mary they had first chosen appeared considerably older. I expressed my concerns to my editor, and the designer went back to work on a new comp. Boy, am I glad!

Read the rest of Nikki's Cover Story at melissacwalker.com.

PS-Watch the trailer, starring the cover model:

rgz Circle of Stars: Nikki Grimes and A Girl Named Mister

I'm so excited to share the latest release from our own Circle of Stars, Nikki Grimes! She was last featured at readergirlz for her classic Bronx Masquerade.

Today we celebrate, A Girl Named Mister, a beautiful verse novel with a strong female protagonist. Here is the story of a fifteen year old girl, raised in the church, making choices she never expected. Within the main character Mary Rudine's journey is a book she reads which depicts the experiences of Mary from the New Testament. A Girl Named Mister shares the story of two teens facing unexpected pregnancies. The ancient story is a light of hope to the protagonist of today.

The weaving of the tales is handled deftly. One flows and mirrors the other like sun dappled rivers converging. None will be disappointed in Nikki's poetic language that lyrically depicts heartache, fear, and joy so vividly.

"Even through
my rayon-cotton blend
his touch
burned the world away."

Find A Girl Named Mister. Read these young women's thoughts, be moved, and then share this novel with another readergirl!



A Girl Named Mister
by Nikki Grimes
Zondervan, 2010