Third World Press

Challenging modern America\'s perspective on love, history, and race relations, these poems deviate from such techniques as free verse and abstraction to concentrate on structured forms; the poet views black artists as Prometheus figures, giving fire and inspiration to American culture, even when they are barely acknowledged. The over all message, however, is gritty and emotional—and sometimes deliberately sentimental—as it pits the joys of love, romance, and racial pride against the sorrows of slavery and segregation.