These are the Breaks

by Idris Goodwin

These Are The Breaks is the debut essay collection of NEA award-winning playwright, HBO Def Poet, and critically acclaimed "indie" rapper, Idris Goodwin. Diverse in scope and wickedly satirical, Goodwin's poetic essays sample race, class, and culture, transcending the page with hip-hop musicality. A rhythmic blend of biting wit and break-beat poetry, Goodwin's prose pulses with purpose. Remixing broken dreams and distorted legacies, Goodwin cross-fades past and present, personal and political: Motown's last vinyl factory juxtaposes against Bronx rap legends battling in open-air arenas; Chicago's Public School system contrasts against Santa Fe's tourism industry; an Egyptian child drowns in the Dead Sea as Nat Turner sprints across Death Valley. These Are The Breaks is the literary mixtape of our cacophonous times.

Genres: Nonfiction, Poetry

112 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2010

About the author

Idris Goodwin is an multi award-winning writer and storyteller whose work spans stage, screen, audio, and page. From his widely produced breakbeat plays and historical dramas such as How We Got On, Hype Man: A Break Beat Play, This is Modern Art and Bars and Measures to books for young readers including Your House is Not Just a House (Harper/Clarion) and King of the Neuro Verse (Simon & Schuster/Atheneum) Goodwin’s been commissioned and or produced by The Kennedy Center, The Eugene O'Neill Conference, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Actors Theatre of Louisville, and Arena Stage. A United States Artist Fellow and seasoned educator, he has created content for HBO Def Poetry, Sesame Street, and NPR. Idris is an Associate Professor of Dramatic Writing at Arizona State University.

Reviews

[David Macpherson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice collection of prose pieces about hip hop, mostly. THe best piece was the longest one, a discription of a tape of a long ago rap battle between two New York MCs. I loved that piece.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

He can really write. Not only that, i felt like I got a serious history and hip hop history lesson.
I definitely recommend this collection.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty impressive prose poems. It's cool to think that he's teaching in Colorado Springs right now too. I'm going to try to work these into my poetry unit next quarter.

[Courtney LeBlanc · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of essay-poems, focusing on childhood, racism, poverty, and hope. Hip-hop essays that meander between poems and raps, filled with satire and reality.