Benjamin Zephaniah : Contemporary Black Achievers

by Verna Allette Wilkins

Growing up poor and on the move, Benjamin Zephaniah didn't tap into his true potential until he had sunk into the depths of despair.His way with words, his mother's love and his strong sense of community helped him to overcome the obstacles in his path.The moving story of a man who informs and amuses people all over the world with his love of life and his rapping rhythms.

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Verna Allette Wilkins is the author of 30 picture books and biographies for young people. Her books have been featured on National Curriculum and BBC children’s television, and been chosen among the Children’s Books of the Year. She was born in Grenada and lives in London.

Reviews

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Benjamin Zephaniah was born in Birmingham in 1958, the first of twins. His family were the only black family in their neighbourhood; he and his twin sister were the only two black people in their school. At the age of eight he was hit in the face which caused him to have a life-long scar (both physically and mentally). By the time he was nine he had six other siblings, including more twins, and his parents constantly argued. Then one day his mother packed cases and told them they were leaving their father. They left home and moved in with a Pakistani family, the only people who would give them refuge.

Benjamin started many schools, he was always unhappy, had no friends apart from animals and insects, so he made up poems. Then after repeated questioning about his school, he told his mum his poem about the farm cat next door to school. It was the first time he had told anyone his poetry, she thought it was good. Constantly avoiding their father, they moved around Birmingham, then to Manchester and on to Worcestershire. At last he found a school that was bearable and he excelled at sports; he also learnt to draw and paint – graffiti in the playground. He was suspended. His loneliness led to trouble, he met three new friends whose hobby was stealing bags. They were caught red-handed by the police. In the court Benjamin was frightened and he ended up in an Approved school where he performed poetry during the evenings.

After he was released his mother decided to send him to Jamaica to stay with his grandmother. He loved it. He enjoyed the life, the music and everyone was black. He felt comfortable and stayed six months. When he came home he went to church with his mother and performed more poems. He couldn’t read or write so no schools would have him. He drifted back into trouble and at twenty one years old ended up in prison. Once there he reflected on his life and realised that he was angry. Angry with his father, the police, the whole world; everyone but his mother, who stood by him. When he left prison he decided he needed to ‘get a grip on this word thing’, ‘this reading, this writing’. He would never, ever go back into prison again.

Two weeks later he joined an adult education class, took on odd jobs to earn money, and performed his poetry wherever he could. He attracted attention with his subject material. A friendly vicar helped him to enter a poetry competition in the paper and he won. His life changed, people thought he was a genius and wanted to hear his poems. He travelled worldwide and became a successful poet. He became ’Poet in Residence’ at both Oxford and Cambridge Universities. His mother was happy, she always had faith in him and she was proud of him.

[Frank A · Rating 3 out of 5]

Children need positive role models and this is exactly what he is. He has a way with words which engage the audience. This would be an interesting read for children and adults eager to learn more about Benjamin Zephaniah's moving story.

[Timothy Burbage · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. For a very short biography it really hit home.

Benjamin Zephaniah is (was :( ) one of my favourite poets. I remember going to a conference at school and he was there. I wasn't studying his poetry, but he completely caught my attention with his words, his wisdom, and his natural charisma. The man was a performer.

This looks at what it was like for him growing up. It wasn't just difficult, it was DIFFICULT. He made wrong choices as he was angry at the world. This book doesn't ignore that. It doesn't ignore that he couldn't read or write until he got out of prison. It shows what he went through as a child. It also shows what his mum went through. Wow.

There are a couple of poems in here as well. You can't help but read them in his sing-song voice and his strange Birmingham-Jamaican accent.

I miss him :(

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recently read AND listened to Benjamin Zephaniah's poem 'Dis Poetry'. It was an amazing piece of performance. I was so impressed with it that I decided to incorporate it into a topic lesson during SBT1 for Black History Month. I managed to find an animated presentation online, which gives a slide by slide description of the poem. The class loved it, they found the language/dialect/accent very entertaining, and coupled with the animations, it really was a hit.
The introduction really paved a way for the students to want to know more about Benjamin, and find out about his other poems. They took turns reading extracts of his other poems in a performance style.
Did I mention that they were only year 3?? - For this reason, I think it can be used across KS2 for all children, it most certainly builds upon children's speaking and listening skills, and can be incorporated across the curriculum! Double thumbs up from me!