Bicycles: Love Poems

You still have not shipped me the book, so I can't review it. When are you going to get it here?

This is one of the best poetry publications I have read. We saw Nikki Giovanni on TV and were so impressed with her that we just had to purchase this book. Everyone should read this!

Excellent work by Nikki Giovanni once again. Loved the book. Chris of Jackson, MS

Giovanni has earned honorary degrees and awards. Her present book, Bicycles, is a collection of poems that serve as a companion to her 1997 Love Poems. Her poetry is romantic, bold, and erotic. She writes about the physiological reactions of seeing a lover or loved one. Tastes, hearing, touching and the power of memory are expressed in several pieces. Giovanni emphasizes that love can be experienced everywhere at all times from many sources and it can lift anyone from the depth of tragedy. There is something for everyone in this very sweet and enjoyable collection.

Five POETIC Stars. Experiences, Dreams, and Love: the stuff of great poetry. NIkki Giovanni is a poet, writer, educator, commentator, and activist who has been showered with awards throughout her storied career which has used books, the stage, Grammy-nominated recordings, the classroom, and visual media as delivery means. She can be dazzling, while convincing the audience that she sees the world in a way through her poems and written commentary that demands attention and commands our considerations. She sometimes uses a simple poetic delivery technique of short powerful, emotional, incisive phrases that reveal the subject matter in a way that is uniquely her own and almost instantly recognizable. A Distinguished Professor of English at Virginia Tech University at Blacksburg, Virginia, Ms Giovanni starts off with a long-form, gut-wrenching, pull-no-punches poem, "BLACKSBURG UNDER SIEGE", from both viewpoints about the terrible day at Virginia Tech which saw the worst mass shooting in US history; the book ends with the stirring poem "WE ARE VIRGINIA TECH", which she delivered at the memorial after the massacre that drew an extended ovation from the crowd and President & Mrs Bush (with the added "Iraqi teenager" comment). In between there are general, memorable views of our world. There are three in a row which are especially notable: "I AM GLASS" runs ordinary glass through its gamut of uses and vulnerabilities; "ALCHEMICAL" gives us a new way of seeing the world, leaving the rest to us.; "NO HEAVEN" justifies its very existence by looking at the wonders of this world. And there is so much more, like the beautiful animal "MIGRATIONS". I haven't finished the book, choosing to read and consider a few poems at a time over a long period of time. What I have read so far, a third of the way in, is marvelous. Its wonderful to re-acquaint myself with this talented poet. Thank you, Ms Giovanni, for some wonderful poems. My Highest Recommendation. Five LYRICAL Stars!! (This review is based on an eBook digital download of 131 pages.)