Using the structure of a poetry slam, Grimes' Coretta Scott King Award-winning novel is a powerful exploration of self, an homage to spoken-word poetry, and an intriguing look into the lives of 18 urban teens. Now available in a new package and format..

Using the structure of a poetry slam, Grimes' Coretta Scott King Award-winning novel is a powerful exploration of self, an homage to spoken-word poetry, and an intriguing look into the lives of 18 urban teens. Now available in a new package and format..

The beloved and award-winning novel now available in a new format with a great new cover

When Wesley Boone writes a poem for his high school English class, some of his classmates clamor to read their poems aloud too. Soon they're having weekly poetry sessions and, one by one, the eighteen students are opening up and taking on the risky challenge of self-revelation. There's Lupe Alvarin, desperate to have a baby so she will feel loved. Raynard Patterson, hiding a secret behind his silence. Porscha Johnson, needing an outlet for her anger after her mother OD's. Through the poetry they share and narratives in which they reveal their most intimate thoughts about themselves and one another, their words and lives show what lies beneath the skin, behind the eyes, beyond the masquerade.