Black Girl You Are Atlas

by Renée Watson, Ekua Holmes (Illustrator)

A thoughtful celebration of Black girlhood by award-winning author and poet Renée Watson.In this semi-autobiographical collection of poems, Renée Watson writesabout her experience growing up as a young Black girl at the intersections of race, class, and gender.Using a variety of poetic forms, from haiku to free verse, Watson shares recollections of her childhood in Portland, tender odes to the Black women in her life, and urgent calls for Black girls to step into their power.Black Girl You Are Atlas encourages young readers to embrace their future with a strong sense of sisterhood and celebration. With full-color art by celebrated fine artist Ekua Holmes throughout, this collection offers guidance and is a gift for anyone who reads it.

Genres: Poetry, Young Adult, Audiobook, Middle Grade, Teen, Feminism, African American

92 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 13, 2024

About the author

Renée Watson is the author of the children’s picture book, A Place Where Hurricanes Happen (Random House, June 2010), which was featured on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams. Her middle grade novel, What Momma Left Me debuted as the New Voice for 2010 in middle grade fiction by The Independent Children's Booksellers Association.

Renée’s one woman show, Roses are Red, Women are Blue, debuted at New York City's Lincoln Center at a showcase for emerging artists. Her poetry and articles have been published in Rethinking Schools, Theatre of the Mind and With Hearts Ablaze.

When Renée is not writing and performing, she is teaching. Renée has worked in public schools and community organizations as an artist in residence for several years, teaching poetry, fiction, and theater in Oregon, Louisiana, and New York City. She also facilitates professional development workshops for teachers and artists.

One of Renée’s passions is using the arts to help youth cope with trauma. She has facilitated poetry and theatre workshops with young girls coping with sexual and physical abuse, children who have witnessed violence, children coping with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and children who relocated to New York City after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. Renée graduated from The New School, where she studied Creative Writing and earned a certificate in Drama Therapy.

Renée currently lives in New York City.

Reviews

[Jan Agaton · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The miracle is that I even exist at all."
This was beautiful, and I'm so happy I chose to randomly pick this up on International Women's Day because it was perfect.

[Bethany (Beautifully Bookish Bethany) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Libro.FM for the audiobook!

Black Girl You Are Atlas is a moving collection of poetry about Black girlhood and coming of age. From the simple pleasures of childhood to learning too early about sexual harassment or violence, to finding your own way in the world and discovering who you want to be. Some pieces (like the titular one) draw on mythology in a way that's smart and interesting. The audiobook is read by the author and it's lovely, she has a really soothing voice. Definitely worth a read!

[TL *Humaning the Best She Can* · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful poems all :) ❤️🧡💛💚💙💜

Some hit close to home 🏡 and made me feel seen.


I'm trying to read more poetry, one of my reading goals this year.

This collection calmed my brain 🧠 enough to concentrate today:).

Read wonderfully by the author 👏

Would recommend this to everyone 👌
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[Maren’s Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a glorious and moving portrayal of Black girlhood, the love between sisters, and the importance of exerting your voice. Told through both free verse and haiku, Watson conveys a powerful message about her experiences growing up and learning to find the power of self.

As someone who doesn’t tend to gravitate towards poetry, I found myself completely smitten with the intensity of each and every word choice, and can only imagine how much more powerful the beautiful illustrations by Ekua Holmes would be beside them. And listening to Watson read her poetry just as she intended it to be read was *chef’s kiss*.

I have to include a couple of verses from my favorite of the poems, When I Say I Love Us. A brilliant poem that encapsulates what makes this book so impactful.

I mean I love, love our bounce back
our clap back,
our backbone,
our backstory,
our comeback,

We go way back.
Our history dripping
And damp from ocean waves.

I mean I love our resistance,
Love our resilience.

I mean I love us.
I mean I love loving us.
I mean I love the love that is us.

Thank you Penguin Teen and PRH Audio for my gifted copies.

✍🏼 Pubs: Feb 13, 2024

[Hallie · Rating 4 out of 5]

“But when the rain comes my curls backslide and Africa proves stronger than any metal comb, than any silk scarf, than any sponge rollers. My sinner hair won’t obey assimilation, won’t covert, no longer obedient…It is born again, made anew. Free.”

<3

[Izzy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this poetry collection. The author reads the poems which always adds to the experience. Overall as a not poetry person generally I found this collection to be enjoyable overall and had some great stand out lines.

Definitely can see myself revisiting it. I do want to pick this up to flip through and see the illustrations now too.

Audio arc from Libro.FM ALC Program

[Princess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Physical Arc provided by Penguin Teen so thank you so much to them..

4.5/5 stars (really good)

So hear me out.. I dont usually like poetry but the topics this poetry collection covers just hits different.. Here are some good lines:

"To write my name is to spell the sorrows of my ancestors, how they were sold and traded, hanged and drowned. How their tears and sweat and blood seeded generations, to say my name is to pronounce resilience" (pg. 5)

"Black girl you are Atlas. The way your very presence in a room is a reminder of where you come from, a demand of what you are owed. Black girl you are Atlas. The way no one expected youth be the fulfillment of prophecy. But it is you, always, who holds the world up." (pg. 17)

"I mean I love our resistance, love our resilience. I mean I love us loving us. I mean I love loving us. I mean I love the love that is us." (pg. 35)

Last one!!!

"I have no Black Girl Magic to give today. Today, I am regular. Not insufficient, not more than enough. Just me. Just right. All I have is the resilience I inherited. And all I have is this drum in my chest beating, thumping, reminding me that I have survived all my yesterdays. The magic is all ways me. The miracle is that I even exist at all." (pg. 80)

There were a lot of great lines and it def resinates with me. I will be picking up a finished copy and checking out other works by Renée.

[Melanie (mells_view) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black Girl You Are Atlas is a beautiful book of poetry (in many forms) highlighting the strengths, the heartaches, the joys, the realities, and the celebrations of being a Black girl coming of age and in life in general. I was able to listen to an early copy from Libro.fm and listening to the poet Renée Watson read her work to us with feeling and passion made her art that much more beautiful and could feel how much of her own life and experience she poured into her work. That said, I am certainly planning to buy a hard copy of the physical book because I want to see the art. The cover art is so beautiful that I can only imagine the interior is just as stunning.

Favorite pieces; Black Like Me, King, Turning Sweet Sixteen, and That Girl.

Here are a few quotes, but please know I have an audio copy so the grammar and blocking are most likely not correct.

that girl - “that girl wants to move to a place where the watermelon she eats is seedless, so there will be no disappointment from fruitless harvests.”

turning sweet sixteen - “but what if I want to be sour? what if when you ask me, ‘how are you?’ I tell you the truth.”

King: for Roy - “and when there’s all this talk about what Black men are not, I think about all he is.”

AVAILABLE NOW!
*ALC Libro.fm

[Sunny Lu · Rating 3 out of 5]

My teenage or pre teen self would have loved this book

[♡ Dakota ♡ (Sarcasm is my middle name) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful. A must read. Five Stars.

[Jess • justpeachyreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

"To say my name is to pronounce resilience."

This is the most beautiful collection of poetry I read in 2023! Absolutely stunning prose and there was so much variety. You can tell that so much love and intention went into every single poem and piece of art. The dual meaning of Atlas being both an all-knowing guide and that which lifts the world up is brilliant.

[Ali | literary_delight · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m so glad I spent my morning with this book. I rarely read poetry, and reading this solidified I need to read more! I loved it. The poems - Love Shows Up and An Etheree of Moving On really moved me. I definitely recommend getting the audiobook, as the author reads it!

Thanks to libro.fm for the advanced listeners copy.

[Rachel | All the RAD Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

such a beauuuuuutiful collection of poetry that packs such a punch and gives such a thoughtful glimpse into Black girlhood and sisterhood ✨ i listened on audio through @librofm and when i saw the physical copy at @bbgbbooks and realized how much stunning art was inside, i knew i needed a copy to keep.

[romancelibrary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Libro.FM for my ALC.

Black Girl You Are Atlas is a love letter to Black girlhood. The author details her experience as a Black girl through a series of creative poems. This collection of poetry is the author's love letter to the young girl she was and to the young Black girls today. It is a celebration of Black girlhood, sisterhood, family, and community. As a non-Black reader, I appreciated getting insight into what it means to be a Black girl.

There are also plenty of life lessons for young girls in this book, some life lessons that I myself just recently learned as an adult. I highly recommend this collection of poetry, especially on audio. The author herself narrates the poems and you could feel all of her emotions through her narration.

I will one day revisit this collection either in eBook or print so I can take a look at the accompanying art.

"Hold onto joy while you wait for happiness."

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a short audiobook of only 51 minutes. It is a collection of poems which are semi-autobiographical reflecting on growing up as a Black girl in Portland. It is also about loving every aspect of what makes you - you!
As I had the audiobook, I couldn’t see the art included in the print version. It was moving and empowering and I’m glad I listened to it.

[Richelle Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you @penquinteen for my book.
⠀
My 💭:
⠀
I’m not a big poetry reader but I tore this book up! I wish I had this book when I was a teenager. The following poems definitely had me all in my feelings.
⠀
King
Black with a Capital B
Knock Knock for Renisha McBride
A Pantoum for Breonna Taylor 😭😭
Love It All
Phenomenon

[Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short collection of poems about growing up as a Black girl, sisterhood, self reflection, growth and odes to women in her life and beyond. Emotional and heavy and beautiful and these pack a major punch. Turning Seven and Black with a Capital B got me good and I would highly recommend the audio when it releases! 🩷

[book bruin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a heartfelt and moving collection of poetry. It was read beautifully by the author, which really heightened the emotional impact. I paused it numerous times while listening to fully process and reflect on the different pieces. Each so wonderful and heartbreaking in their own way. “That Girl”, “Turning Seven”, “King: For Roy”, and “When I Say I Love Us” are just a few of my favorites. I can’t recommend this one enough! Please do yourself a favor and read this one immediately!

*I voluntarily listened to a review copy of this book*

[Erin Cataldi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not only is the poetry moving and heavy, the accompanying illustrations are fantastic. This poetry collection is a wonderful celebration and reflection of Black girlhood. Renee celebrates the highs and lows of her childhood while simultaneously expounding on the experience as a whole. A true delight, I devoured this collection in one sitting.

[Jesse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely gorgeous verse. I teared up more than once. If I’d had a print copy I would’ve highlighted more than I left blank! Thanks to Libro.fm for the advanced listening copy.

[theperksofbeingmarissa ;) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black Girl You Are Atlas is a beautiful collection, well-written collection of poems centering on black girlhood. 💗✨️💫💓

[Charnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful poetry. Beautiful art work. Beautiful affirmation for Black girls 🥹

[Tomes And Textiles]

Thanks so much to PRH audio for my audiobook arc of this amazing poetry collection! I bookmarked multiple lines in every poem. To have the author narrate the audiobook was such a treat to hear the lines as she intended. I heard the physical book has beautiful illustrations. I can not wait to get my hands on it.

[Florence Migga · Rating 5 out of 5]

This audiobook is less than an hour and there are some great, great poems in it. I think I need to re-read this in its physical form so I can highlight and sticky note all the phrases that really struck me.

[Chasity R · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will revisit this over and over. It felt like a breath of fresh air dedicated to Black women and girls.

The poems are so fluent and good that you can literally devour it in one day!

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’d give it 6 stars if I could.

Looking for a book that gives Cowboy Carter vibes? Look no further than BLACK GIRL YOU ARE ATLAS by Renèe Watson. This collection of poetry does not tell a single narrative like a novel in verse, but like Cowboy Carter, it should be experienced as a whole work of art. And like Cowboy Carter, this book is both about the writer as an individual Black woman and about the Black experience.

It’s also giving me Newbery vibes. And the stunning collage art by Ekua Holmes could even be Caldecott worthy.

[Ann Haefele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exquisite language in different poem styles convey the growing up of a black girl in Oregon, beginning at the age of 7 through her teens. Short book ( about 80 pages ) with a teen girl pictured on the front makes this accessible to all ages of children. Teens won’t think it’s babyish and older elementary kids will find the text not too dense. Book is based on the author’s life. She brings in personal experiences, as well as key moments in history related to Black life. One of my favorite poems was on page 50, “How to Survive your Teen Years.” If only all teens had access to this poem and took it to heart.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a short but exceptional collection of poetry. A true love letter to the resilience and strength and beauty of Black women and girls.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Renée Watson's Black Girl You Are Atlas is the best book of poetry I have read in years. Outstanding.

[Nae · Rating 5 out of 5]

thank you so much @prhaudio for the free audiobook and to @PenguinTeen and @KokilaBooks for the gifted finished copy!

i adored this collection of beautiful poetry as they all eloquently embraced the beauty of being a black girl. so many of these poems resonated with me and even brought me to think of so many of the young black girls in my life today. here are some that really stood out:

𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯
trust
yourself
to know when
it’s time to leave
people, places, things.
staying too long stunts growth,
fosters bitterness, regret.
around the corner there is more.
keep going, keep going, keep going.
sometimes, the one blocking the path is you

𝘴𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘬𝘶, 𝘪𝘪𝘪
gather the women,
the truth tellers, the wise ones.
always keep them close.

𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘯
i have no black girl magic
to give today.
Today, I am regular.
Not insufficient,
not more than enough.
Just me. Just right.
I am hair bonnet,
chipped nail polish, and unpolished toes. …
And all I have is this history tied around my neck
haunting and hyping me.
All I have is the resilience I inherited.

🖤😮‍💨