Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge discussion

Use this space to discuss books you're reading or that might fit the 20th Read Harder task. Sign up for our new Read Harder newsletter to get recommendations for each task delivered straight to your inbox! https://bookriot.com/newsletter/read-...

I'll be doing When My Brother Was an Aztec by Natalie Díaz.

Going for Apple: Skin to the Core, but I also recommend:
Old Love Skin: Voices From Contemporary Africa
Find Her. Keep Her.
Upile Chisala any of her works
Poukahangatus: Poems
Felon: Poems
and The Language We Were Never Taught to Speak

I don't think I'm going to get to Call Us What We Carry before 2022 is out, but I have it ready to go so it will likely be what I read for this. I also have Bone by Yrsa Daley-Ward and The Good Arabs by Eli Tareq El Bechelany-Lynch on hold with the library right now, so they're options too. I read a lot of poetry, primarily by queer poets or poets of colour, so this isn't a task I'm likely to struggle with.

A few books I would suggest:
Voodoo Hypothesis
The Weary Blues
Dead Dad Jokes
I am The Rage: A Black Poetry Collection
Postcolonial Love Poem
River Woman
Don't Call Us Dead
Tonguebreaker
Disintegrate/Dissociate
This Wound Is a World
A Place Called No Homeland
and of course: Nepantla: An Anthology Dedicated to Queer Poets of Color

There's lots of great stuff to choose from for this task, I'm excited to see suggestions!

I am not so good with books of poetry, though I love hand-selected great poems that other people read or give to me. Just sitting down and reading through a book of poems, though, is tough.

Does anyone have recommendations for a book for this prompt that is fun, propulsive, or otherwise might carry me through?

Diamond Grill
Cartouches
Immigrant Blues

Some Canadian Content if people are looking for it :)

And We Rise by Erica Martin or Helium by Rudy Francisco are both good options.

I'm going with The Carrying: Poems by Ada Limon. In 2022, she was named the 24th Poet Laureate of the United States by the Librarian of Congress. She is the first Latina to be Poet Laureate of the United States.

There are quite a few books by indigenous author Joy Harjo which I've been meaning to get to so I'll start with one of those.

Ron wrote: "There are quite a few books by indigenous author Joy Harjo which I've been meaning to get to so I'll start with one of those."

Have you read her before? Which of her books of poetry would you recommend to start with?

Lailah wrote: "I am not so good with books of poetry, though I love hand-selected great poems that other people read or give to me. Just sitting down and reading through a book of poems, though, is tough."

You could try The World's Wife by Carol Ann Duffy. It's short too.

I'm thinking about Apple: Skin to the Core but it's described as memoir in verse but I think that can work for this.

I'm planning on reading Amanda Gorman's Call Us What We Carry

Milena wrote: "Ron wrote: "There are quite a few books by indigenous author Joy Harjo which I've been meaning to get to so I'll start with one of those."

Have you read her before? Which of her books of poetry wo..."

I just recently finished Weaving Sundown in a Scarlet Light: Fifty Poems for Fifty Years by Joy Harjo and it's a beautiful collection, with a great introduction from Sandra Cisneros.

Elizabeth wrote: "Milena wrote: "Ron wrote: "There are quite a few books by indigenous author Joy Harjo which I've been meaning to get to so I'll start with one of those."

Have you read her before? Which of her boo..."

Thank you!

Don't Call Us Dead is so unbelievably good.

Milena wrote: Have you read her before? Which of her books of poetry would you recommend to start with?

I have. I read her recent material, Catching the Light and Weaving Sundown in a Scarlet Light: Fifty Poems for Fifty Years .

Though I love her book She Had Some Horses: Poems

Highly recommend Your Emergency Contact Has Experienced an Emergency!

So many good recommendations already! Definitely echo the ones for Danez Smith, Natalie Diaz, and Joy Harjo.

Some other recs:
The Renunciations: Poems by Donika Kelly
Life on Mars by Tracy K. Smith
American Sonnets for My Past and Future Assassin by Terrance Hayes
Whereas by Layli Long Soldier
The Tradition by Jericho Brown
Night Sky with Exit Wounds by Ocean Vuong

I'm thinking of reading Obit by Victoria Chang or Olio by Tyehimba Jess.

I'll probably go with something by Jackie Kay who is BIPOC and queer. I've heard her reading some of her work on TV, but never read any of her collections.

I'm reading Arrow by Sumita Chakraborty.

Also recommend:
Flood Damages, which will work for the 'local' prompt for Australians + independently published
Take Care- independently published.
Dropbear
Steep Tea
The Autobiography of a Goddess

The Poet X. It has been on my TBR list for a long time. And/or Coming into 82 by May Sarton. I’ve been reading her journals.

Lailah wrote: "I am not so good with books of poetry, though I love hand-selected great poems that other people read or give to me. Just sitting down and reading through a book of poems, though, is tough.

Does ..."

I can't read a book of poetry like a regular book. I will read one or two poems a day so they can sink in. I then get through two books at the same time.

Judith wrote: "Lailah wrote: "I am not so good with books of poetry, though I love hand-selected great poems that other people read or give to me. Just sitting down and reading through a book of poems, though, is..."

Ooh, The World's Wife looks really interesting. Thank you!

I just read The Chattering Wagtails of Mikuyu Prison for another challenge (trying to read more African authors) and I highly recommend it. It is gorgeous book of poetry.

I'm currently reading The Sun and Her Flowers. I enjoyed reading Milk and Honey a few years ago, so I thought I'd dive into this one.

A History of My Brief Body by Billy-Ray Belcourt seems like would be excellent for this. That's what I'm reading.

I’m planning to read The Inheritance of Haunting by Heidi Andrea Restrepo Rhodes and/or The Renunciations: Poems by Donika Kelly.

I want to read Faithful and Virtuous Night by Louise Glück

I finally read Call Us What We Carry, so that's this task done! It's a good collection--a bit uneven in places, but also some truly phenomenal works as well. Definitely worth the read!

I’m planning on reading Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral by Phillis Wheatley.

I recommend The Sound the Stars Make Rushing Through the Sky: The Writings of Jane Johnston Schoolcraft by Jane Johnston Schoolcraft.

I just saw The Death of Sitting Bear: New and Selected Poems on the new shelves at my library yesterday so I picked it up.

I read Humid Pitch: Narrative Poetry. The poet, Cheryl Clarke, is a Black lesbian. I was at a poetry reading Ms. Clarke did about thirty years ago and I bought this book, which she signed. Powerful poetry.

Dione wrote: "I'll be doing When My Brother Was an Aztec by Natalie Díaz."

Great recommendation. Thanks!

I'm reading Dēmos: An American Multitude by Benjamín Naka-Hasebe Kingsley.

I am going with Lord of the Butterflies as I already have a copy at home and love Andrea Gibson's poetry.

I just finished The Poet X and it was excellent! I listened to it on audio, and the author reads it herself. It's a fiction story written in verse, so the audio version is like listening to a spoken word performance.

Judith wrote: "You could try The World's Wife by Carol Ann Duffy. It's short too."

Thanks Judith! I know the recommendation wasn't for me but I was looking for something similar (something "easy" to start with for somebody not really into poetry) so I grabbed this one and read a few poems and so far I'm really enjoying it!

I put The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country on my list. It's a very short book which is what I need at the moment.

Evilblacksheep wrote: Thanks Judith! I know the recommendation wasn't for me but I was looking for something similar (something "easy" ..."

You're welcome. I always loved Mrs Icarus!

I have just finished Jackie Kay's The Adoption Papers - short, but not a particularly easy read, although I enjoyed it.

I am reading Brandon O’Brien’s Can you Sign my Tentacle for this task. Described as Cthulhu meets hip-hip, a book of horror poems that flips the eldritch genre upside down.

I was going to go with Amanda Gorman's work, but decided to go a different route.

I'm going to be reading some Indigenous poetry instead.

Judith wrote: "Evilblacksheep wrote: Thanks Judith! I know the recommendation wasn't for me but I was looking for something similar (something "easy" ..."

You're welcome. I always loved Mrs Icarus!

I have just ..."

I just finished The World's Wife and while it was mostly not for me, it was a great fit for fulfilling this challenge and gave my reading life a little stretch. I did really like Mrs. Tieresias, Mrs Icarus, and Eurdicye.

I recently started reading Call Us What We Carry, but it feels quite long (for a poetry book). In the audiobook challenge thread, someone suggested listening to the audio, so I may do that.

In the cover thread, I stumbled upon Punks: New & Selected Poems. I don't know which I'll count it for.

The Language We Were Never Taught to Speak, Black Girl, Call Home and I am The Rage: A Black Poetry Collection are on my tbr. I want to read more poetry this year so maybe I can tackle a few.

I'm excited to have discovered this book in our school library: They Call Me Güero: A Border Kid's Poems, by David Bowles. It will be my choice for this task!

I read On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous

A couple books I am considering for this prompt which I haven't seen mentioned yet:

Promises of Gold by Jose Olivarez
Nature Poem by Tommy Pico

I read Call Us What We Carry: Poems for this prompt.