Voices in the Air audiobook

Loved this collection of poems by a favorite poet! There are many many favorites in these pages and I can envision using them with students in a variety of ways. And the final version promises illustrations I've not even seen yet... can't wait to own a hard back copy.Some of the poems are love poems to beloved poets: Walt Whitman, Langston Hughes, Mary Oliver, Lucille Clifton and so many more. My absolute favorite of these is about visiting John O'Donahue's home shortly after his death.Some of the poems express gratitude to writers and artists: John Steinbeck, Mark Twain, Joni Mitchell and many others. My absolute favorite: an ode to Vera B. Williams, author of the masterful picture book A Chair for My Mother.And then there are poems to activists and ordinary humans like me, illuminating our experiences beautifully. Here is the one I plan to learn by heart:Next Time Ask More QuestionsBefore leaning into something, rememberthe span of time is long and gracious.No one perches dangerously on any clifftill you reply. Is there a pouch of raindesperately thirsty people wait to drink fromif you say yes or no? I don't think so.Never embrace "crucial" or "urgent" - maybe for them?Those are not your words.Hold your horses and your mania and yourHong Kong dollar coins in your pocket.I'm not a corner or a critical turning page.Wait. I'll think about it.This pressure you share is a fantasy, a misplaced hinge.Maybe I'm already where I need to be.The poems about refugees and victims of violence broke my heart wide open. And those about doing what can be done in these troubling times were a balm. I will return to this collection often.

Shihab Nye‘s one and two liners of pocket wisdom are everywhere in this book. I’m new to reading books of poetry cover to cover and am still developing an appreciation for them. Like sips of complex wine, each poem needs time to develop on the palate and reveal themselves to you. I learned to reread and reread and pause and reflect then reread again in a way I haven’t practiced since college. These poems are of invisible and lost things, things that have moved past and moved on. They’re about stopping and seeing and listening to those things with love, curiosity, and an open heart.

I want to memorize the introduction and recite it to everyone I know.

This poetry anthology title's target audience is readers ages 14-18. As someone with very limited knowledge or experience with poetry, I found this title to be truly unique of what I perceived poetry was. These poems do not feature rhyme schemes or rhythm patters I immediately think of when I think of poetry. These poems are pure, stream-of-consciousness, excellence that have common themes of adventure, independence, and mindfulness. The poems often broke my believed rules of writing, as they would routinely repeat the same word several times to reinforce an idea or feeling. The author, Naomi Shihab Nye, would also give meaning or feeling to her poems by playing with the spaces in between words, sometimes leaving large gaps in between them to perhaps present a pause, or perhaps simply to give visual representation of feeling or emotion. The book's strength is its tones of adventure, that makes the mind wander to exciting, yet peaceful faraway experiences. A weakness is that it is certainly abstract, and the reader will not relate to every poem. I would recommend this to true poetry lovers, but it isn't the easiest introductory poetry book. There were a few illustrations of birds throughout the book, that added to the anthology by enhancing the theme of adventure. 4/5 for its genre.

Naomi Shihab Nye is a local poetry phenom. She’s a national treasure who speaks her truth in a plethora of books. She’s my “I Wanna Be HER When/If I Grow Up” model. Her poem, ‘Famous’ is ripe with personification, metaphor, and repetition and is a hallmark piece when teaching poetry.🌎So when I spotted a book I hadn’t read by her on the shelves of a bookstore, I immediately snatched it up and read it cover-to-cover. In the store. Sorry, @barnesandnoble🌎This book is a must-read. VOICES IN THE AIR is unique in that most of the poems are dedicated toward people, both alive and otherwise. Some are politically charged, some are odes to the beauty and grandeur of West Texas.🌎“Little Brother Shot Playing With Pistol” reminded me of @jasonreynolds83 poem just added to poets.org only today, and it got me thinking...What if, after kids have consumed timely articles on current events ala #kellygallagher, they wrote their OWN poem that reflected a current event in our world? What would a student have to say about the world he/she is soon to inherit? How powerful might the voices of the next generation be, and are we willing and able to actively listen to their lense? Hmmmm...🌎

From the poem Small Basket of Happiness: “It would never call your name./But it would be waiting somewhere close,/perhaps under a crushed leaf/turned from pale green to gold/with no fanfare…You would slow down a minute./ You would bend.” Like happiness itself, Nye’s poems steal up on us and take us by surprise. This collection, especially, encourages listening: to nature, to other voices, and to the whispers of our own hearts. Without ever being heavy-handed, the poems urge readers to turn away from life’s endless distractions and attend to the timeless. “A peony has been trying to get through to you”. Brimming with affection, wit and steadfast optimism, these are poems we truly need right now.

Voices in the Air: Poems for Listeners by Naomi Shihab Nye is an excellent book. Like most poetry books it did not really have a plot. At first, I thought this would be very disappointing but I found it was actually rather nice in a different sort of way. Rather than me having to remember the entire story to that point I could just pick it up and read it and it made perfect sense whether or not I remembered the last poem. On the other hand, it didn't really build on itself, like what you get with stories with plots; It just kinda was. I liked the high concentration of lessons in it. In a normal book is one or two lessons stretched out across an entire book but with this, it was one or two every poem. All this considered I gave this book a 5-star rating.

I love "A Lonely Cup of Coffee"

A beautiful collection of poems!

If you like poetry, you can't go wrong with anything by Naomi Shihab Nye.

Powerful read.I was unaware of the issues related to Palestine and the author gently, yet powerfully, provides insights and stories which are powerful and captivating.I am sold on this poet!

One thing I love about Naomi Shihab Nye's poetry collections is that her introductions are as nourishing as the poetry itself. In Voices, she talks about the need to listen better—how to reclaim a quiet, slower pace in our lives in order to become more receptive."Reminding ourselves of what we love feels helpful. Walking outside—it's as quiet as it ever was. The birds still communicate without any help from us. In that deep quietude, doesn't the air, and the memory, feel more full of voices? If we slow down and intentionally practice listening, calming our own clatter, maybe we hear those voices better. They live on in us." –NSNThe 95 poems that follow are organized into three sections: Messages, Voices in the Air, and More Worlds. While I've read several of her collections, Voices in the Air: Poems for Listeners is special to me. Judging by reviews, I'm not the only one who feels that way. I love the range of poems included—the breadth of tone, style, and subject matter—but perhaps most of all, I strongly connect with the book's purpose—"[to] honor the artists, writers, poets, historical figures, ordinary people, and diverse luminaries from past and present who have inspired her. Full of words of encouragement, solace, and hope, this collection offers a message of peace and empathy." –NSNThis is a book that celebrates inspiration, yes; but for me, Voices in the Air also is also a book of love poems. Not the romantic sort, but poems that honor the deep connection and heartfelt respect for the subjects of these poems. Sometimes grateful, other times searching, Nye's poems are, at all times, mindful conversations with people, places, and events that have accompanied her on her journey thus far. You'll also find biographical notes at the back of the book for each person referenced, as well as recommendations for where you might turn for further exploration.As I read through these poems again and again, I find myself connecting with Voices on a profoundly personal level. I discovered sources of inspiration that she and I have in common, as well as stories and relationships that echo my own. Listening for the wisdom of these voices, Nye asks questions, seeks understanding, uncovers beauty, comes to terms, and, through her poems, we, too, are strengthened and motivated to open our hearts and live more connected and fulfilling lives."The poem is not a closed experience, it remains open. It invites you in, hopefully." –NSN

It's a cliche to call a book "generous" but I can't resist using this term to describe "Voices in the Air." In her poems, NSN shares pieces of her life--her daily life, her reading, her travels, her politics. I'm so grateful for the way she gives. In particular, she's interested in this text in talking back to the voices of writers, artists, advocates, and students who've spoken to her, and even includes 2-3 sentence bios of them at the end of "Voices..." (I jotted down at least a half dozen book titles while reading these bios). And her poems about coffee, Palestine, and so much more are all poems about her, which possibly makes the work sound indulgent--it NEVER is. It's vivid, real, and makes readers want to live a more examined life, to read more, and to write more. Essential reading!

Powerful, tender, approachable poems from one of our finest living poets. Nye continually calls our attention to telling details and voices of absent (sometimes long-absent) friends, urging us to unplug our devices and be present in the moment--to hear our own innermost thoughts, to revel in natural beauty, to call memories to mind, to recall wise words spoken to us in pages written long ago. Today is hectic, crazy, often unkind, Nye acknowledges; but we have it in our power to make the day kinder and calmer, at least for ourselves and those who, intentionally or accidentally, share parts of our day's journey with us.Highly recommended. Teachers can find excellent read-aloud selections here.