The Creation (25th Anniversary Edition)

The Creation (25th Anniversary Edition)
Author: James Weldon Johnson
Publisher: Holiday House
Total Pages: 41
Release: 2018-10-02
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 0823440257

An award-winning retelling of the Biblical creation story from a star of the Harlem Renaissance and an acclaimed illustrator James Weldon Johnson, author of the civil rights anthem "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing," wrote this beautiful Bible-learning story in 1922, at the height of the Harlem Renaissance. Set in the Deep South, The Creation alternates breathtaking scenes from Genesis with images of a country preacher under a tree retelling the story for children. The exquisite detail of James E. Ransome's sun-dappled paintings and the sophisticated rhythm of the free verse pay tribute to Black American oral traditions of country sermonizing and storytelling: As far as the eye of God could see/ Darkness covered everything/ Blacker than a hundred midnights/ Down in a cypress swamp. . . . This beautiful new edition of the classic Coretta Scott King Award winner features a fresh, modern design, a reimagined cover, and an introduction of the remarkable life of James Weldon Johnson. Beneath the dust jacket, the case features a detail of Ransome's beautiful night sky, spangled with stars. A Junior Library Guild selection!

The Creation

The Creation
Author: James Weldon Johnson
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 1994
Genre: American poetry
ISBN: 9780823412075

A poem based on the story of creation from the first book of the Bible.

Exquisite

Exquisite
Author: Suzanne Slade
Publisher: Abrams
Total Pages: 48
Release: 2020-04-07
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 1683354729

A picture-book biography of celebrated poet Gwendolyn Brooks, the first Black person to win the Pulitzer Prize A 2021 Coretta Scott King Book Award Illustrator Honor Book A 2021 Robert F. Sibert Informational Honor Book A 2021 Association of Library Service to Children Notable Children's Book Gwendolyn Brooks (1917–2000) is known for her poems about “real life.” She wrote about love, loneliness, family, and poverty—showing readers how just about anything could become a beautiful poem. Exquisite follows Gwendolyn from early girlhood into her adult life, showcasing her desire to write poetry from a very young age. This picture-book biography explores the intersections of race, gender, and the ubiquitous poverty of the Great Depression—all with a lyrical touch worthy of the subject. Gwendolyn Brooks was the first Black person to win the Pulitzer Prize, receiving the award for poetry in 1950. And in 1958, she was named the poet laureate of Illinois. A bold artist who from a very young age dared to dream, Brooks will inspire young readers to create poetry from their own lives.

From the Poetry of Sumer

From the Poetry of Sumer
Author: Samuel Noah Kramer
Publisher: Univ of California Press
Total Pages: 110
Release: 2023-11-10
Genre: History
ISBN: 0520332725

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1979.

The Seven Days of Creation

The Seven Days of Creation
Author: Jeff Jinnett
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Total Pages: 106
Release: 2015-12-13
Genre:
ISBN: 9781530126712

Fans of the medieval Rabbinic sages Rashi and Ramban will enjoy how the author has used poetry to update and embody some of their brilliant Torah insights. One example is the poem "Raven's Song" which explores Rashi's explanation as to the real reason why the raven was set loose from Noah's ark and never returned. For parents looking for a closing to their perfect Bar or Bat Mitzvah speech, the poem "Blessing" expands on the traditional Shabbat blessing to enumerate the gifts of all of the tribes of Israel and wish them upon the child. For Rabbis and serious scholars of the Tanakh, "Brother Sun and Sister Moon" incorporates a wealth of Talmudic references in the course of a heated religious debate as to whether men or women are more blessed in God's eyes. All scriptural references in the poetry are annotated and explained in the second half of the book for those readers who are inspired by the poetry and related artwork to pursue deeper Torah study. As is evident from the above, the poetry and art in this book is inspired by the Torah and other Jewish Holy Scriptures and is intended for a Jewish audience. However, non-Jewish readers can enjoy the poetry and artwork, although they may not understand some of the Talmudic references. The initial inspiration for this book was Psalm 104, which recounts the entire creation, where God's glory is seen as a garment of light as He begins his creation, the Moon is appointed for the seasons, the young lions retreat to their dens with the rising of the sun, the high hills are a refuge for the goats, Leviathan is seen playing among the ships in the sea and God's spirit goes forth across the earth to renew it. Edward Burne-Jones' "Days of Creation" painting is the visual illustration of Psalm 104, with the seventh angel playing a harp at the bottom of panel 6 representing the seventh day of creation. Some of the poems in this book are didactic poems intended to explain cryptic scriptural passages or reveal the deeper meaning behind a Jewish prayer. For example, the poem "It is Enough" examines Proverbs 30:15-16, which speaks of four things that are never satisfied: the grave, the barren womb, the earth that is not filled with water and the fire. Drawing on Talmudic sources, the poem explores the underlying meaning of this cryptic passage. Also, the poem "And to the Stranger" was inspired by a passage from the Kol Nidre prayer, which asks that atonement be granted even to the "stranger who lives among them, for all have transgressed unwittingly". The poem uses imagery and art to illuminate the hidden significance of the rituals of Yom Kippur. Although didactic poetry today is a forgotten art, the author believes that it still can serve an invaluable purpose when used to reveal the Tanakh as a true "Tree of Life" for those who hold on to it. Other poems are simply inspired by Jewish Holy Scriptures and are not intended to serve any higher didactic purpose. For example, "A Higher Song" describes the passage of the seasons and was inspired by a passage from 1 Chronicles 16 describing the trees of the wood singing out at the presence of the Lord. The second section of this book annotates each poem to show the scriptural underpinnings and allusions in each poem. Sandra Bowden's artwork and illuminated Hebrew text which accompanies the annotated poetry are intended to provide visual counterparts to the poetry, as well as an independent artistic exploration of the themes contained in this book.

God's Trombones

God's Trombones
Author: James Weldon Johnson
Publisher: Penguin Group
Total Pages: 88
Release: 1927
Genre: Fiction
ISBN:

The inspirational sermons of the old Negro preachers are set down as poetry in this collection -- a classic for more than forty years, frequently dramatized, recorded, and anthologized. Mr. Johnson tells in his preface of hearing these same themes treated by famous preachers in his youth; some of the sermons are still current, and like the spirituals they have taken a significant place in black folk art. In transmuting their essence into original and moving poetry, the author has also ensured the survival of a great oral tradition. Book jacket.

All Creation Waits

All Creation Waits
Author: Gayle Boss
Publisher: Paraclete Press
Total Pages: 75
Release: 2016-10-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1612618790

Open a window each day of Advent onto the natural world.

Biblical Poetry and the Art of Close Reading

Biblical Poetry and the Art of Close Reading
Author: J. Blake Couey
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 329
Release: 2018-08-30
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1108698190

This volume explores the aesthetic dimensions of biblical poetry, offering close readings of poems across the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. Composed of essays by fifteen leading scholars of biblical poetry, it offers creative and insightful close readings of poems from across the canon of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament (Psalms, wisdom poetry, Song of Songs, prophecy, and poetry in biblical narrative). The essays build on recent advances in our understanding of biblical poetry and engage a variety of theoretical perspectives and current trends in the study of literature. They demonstrate the rewards of careful attention to textual detail, and they provide models of the practice of close reading for students, scholars, and general readers. They also highlight the rich aesthetic value of the biblical poetic corpus and offer reflection on the nature of poetry itself as a meaningful and enduring form of art.

A Poem for Peter

A Poem for Peter
Author: Andrea Davis Pinkney
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 29
Release: 2016-11-01
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
ISBN: 042528770X

A celebration of the extraordinary life of Ezra Jack Keats, creator of The Snowy Day. The story of The Snowy Day begins more than one hundred years ago, when Ezra Jack Keats was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. The family were struggling Polish immigrants, and despite Keats’s obvious talent, his father worried that Ezra’s dream of being an artist was an unrealistic one. But Ezra was determined. By high school he was winning prizes and scholarships. Later, jobs followed with the WPA and Marvel comics. But it was many years before Keats’s greatest dream was realized and he had the opportunity to write and illustrate his own book. For more than two decades, Ezra had kept pinned to his wall a series of photographs of an adorable African American child. In Keats’s hands, the boy morphed into Peter, a boy in a red snowsuit, out enjoying the pristine snow; the book became The Snowy Day, winner of the Caldecott Medal, the first mainstream book to feature an African American child. It was also the first of many books featuring Peter and the children of his — and Keats’s — neighborhood. Andrea Davis Pinkney’s lyrical narrative tells the inspiring story of a boy who pursued a dream, and who, in turn, inspired generations of other dreamers.

Reading Genesis Well

Reading Genesis Well
Author: C. John Collins
Publisher: Zondervan Academic
Total Pages: 336
Release: 2018-11-13
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0310598583

What does it mean to be a good reader of Genesis 1-11? What does it mean to take these ancient stories seriously and how does that relate to taking them literally? Can we even take any of this material seriously? Reading Genesis Well answers these questions and more, promoting a responsible conversation about how science and biblical faith relate by developing a rigorous approach to interpreting the Bible, especially those texts that come into play in science and faith discussions. This unique approach connects the ancient writings of Genesis 1-11 with modern science in an honest and informed way. Old Testament scholar C. John Collins appropriates literary and linguistic insights from C. S. Lewis and builds on them using ideas from modern linguistics, such as lexical semantics, discourse analysis, and sociolinguistics. This study helps readers to evaluate to what extent it is proper to say that the Bible writers held a "primitive" picture of the world, and what function their portrayal of the world and its contents had in shaping the community.