Goodreads Mobile | see what your friends are reading

May 18, 2010

Erin rated it:

This book is recommended for grades 9 and up because the subject matter is very emotionally difficult. Nothing I say here will do justice to this book, except to say: you simply have to read it. If you don't know the story of Emmett Till, you may want to read about him first and read A Wreath for Emmett Till after because the poetry will have a more dramatic impact. This book received both a Coretta Scott King Author Honor Award and a Printz Honor Award for excellence in young adult literatur More...

3 comments like (3 people liked it)

Dec 23, 2010

Wendy rated it:

I've been wanting to read this for awhile, and found it disappointing. I also picked up a copy of a cycle of poems about an author's cat and was much more moved by that book than this one. Given the topics, I realized that either there's something wrong with me, or with this book. In her foreward, Nelson writes "the strict form became a kind of insulation, a way of protecting myself from the intense pain of the subject matter." I think she overdid it, and replaced feeling with form More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 14, 2010

Ch_beth rated it:

A Wreath for Emmett Till by Marilyn Nelson takes readers into the emotions people felt when young Emmett Till was murder for supposedly whistling at a white woman in Mississippi in the 1950’s. Nelson writes the story as a heroic crown of sonnets, and she begins the book with a description of this form. Readers definitely need to bring background knowledge of the story of Emmett Till to this book as it does not clearly tell readers what happened. The author does include a summary of the events an More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Sep 26, 2009

Sara rated it:

Summary:

A Wreath for Emmett Till is a picture book intended for older readers - students in middle school or high school. A Wreath for Emmett Till is made up of a collection of 15 sonnets. The author uses a form of repetition (each poem starts with the last line of the previous poem and the 15th poem is a list of all the last lines) that links these sonnets together into what is known as a heroic crown of sonnets.

This heroic crown of sonnets is Marilyn Nelson's tribute More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Sep 27, 2009

Laura rated it:

Summary-
A Wreath for Emmett Till is a picture book intended for older readers. This book contains 15 interlinked sonnets about Emmett Till and the painful subject of his lynching. Each sonnet in the book represents a different emotion or aspect of this difficult part of history. The author, Marilyn Nelson, uses a crown of sonnets to write her poems (the last line of one of the sonnets becomes the first line of the next, the final sonnet contains 1 line from each of the preceding 14 poem More...

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 29, 2011

Quincy rated it:

A Wreath for Emmet Till written by Marilyn Nelson, is a collection of 15 sonnets (the last an heroic sonnet). Each sonnet touches on Emmet’s death from a different perspective. For instance, sonnet one connects Emmet’s death and the need for flowers to Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Sonnet five compares the pain Emmet Tills’ mother Ms. Mobley would have experienced to that of Mary the mother of Jesus. Sonnet five also recognizes that like Jesus’ death, Emmet Tills’ death sparked outrage and protest. More...

0 comments like

Oct 08, 2011

Jennifer rated it:

This is a book that, while dealing with horrific circumstances, can be used to introduce mid to higher level readers to history and poetry. Younger readers would be questionable marks to share this with. I was pleased to see that the book dealt with racism in a straightforward manner but did not promote racism. That is, it clearly stated the facts of Emmett's death, the gruesomeness, the white men who were involved, the mother's reactions; but it did not say that every white man in the nation More...

0 comments like

Sep 21, 2011

Jadalynn rated it:

This is poetry and I would say it’s for advanced readers. I think younger children would have a hard time really grasping this book. It was also awarded the Michael L. Printz Award. It’s about a boy who was lynched after all, how many young kids even know what that is? How many parents want their little kids to know what that is? It’s not a very comfortable book to read, and the pictures in it don’t make it any more comfortable to read. I like it, both as a book and as a book that could be broug More...

0 comments like

Aug 05, 2009

Andi rated it:

Ms Nelson had created an amazing tribute to Emmett Till, a 14 year old boy who was lynched in 1955. His murderers were identified but acquitted. His heartbroken mother held an open casket funeral, drawing the attention of the whole world to his brutal torture and murder, and sparking the Civil Rights movements of the '50 and '60.

A heroic crown of sonnets is a collection of 15 sonnets, 14 of which connect in a circle with the last line of each sonnet transformed into the first line o More...

0 comments like

May 20, 2009

Anna rated it:

Recently, an 11th grade African American male student proudly told me that he learned from his research on the Civil Rights Movement for a history paper that it didn’t start with Martin Luther King Jr. or Rosa Parks. I told him, “Then you must’ve read about Emmett Till” and put A Wreath for Emmett Till in his hands. The poet writes in her foreword, “When I decided to write a poem about lynching for young people, I knew I would write about Emmett Till. He was lynched when he was the age of the More...

0 comments like

Mar 08, 2009

Bonnie rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

0 comments like

Jul 05, 2010

Erin rated it:

I wavered between 3 and 4, but the artwork made me round up. The illustrations fit the work perfectly.

I haven't read much YA poetry, and I thought this was a moving collection. When I read that she was writing in a heroic crown of sonnets, I thought the form would make it feel forced, but it still had a natural feel to it. I liked the way Nelson included an appendix in the back that explained the references she made, which seemed very appropriate for a YA audience. I liked that she i More...

0 comments like

Feb 20, 2011

Nicolewinter2011 rated it:

Illustrator: Philippe Lardy
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company
Year Published: 2005
Reading Level: Grades 4-12

This illustrated text follows Italian sonnets (Petrarchan). The richness of the vocabulary and the eloquence of the author's style can educate young adult readers about such a horrific event with poignance. The author chose a young adult audience because Emmett Till was a young adult when he died as a result of a inhumane crime. Hints of biographic informat More...

3 comments like

Mar 21, 2011

L11_Nick rated it:

Powerful. Nelson does an amazing job of bringing to light one of the most horrific events in American history. Before reading the book I was apprehensive as to how well Nelson could encapsulate the emotion and moral injustice that the story provokes. However, the combination of illustrations and gripping poetry is proof that Nelson knew what he was doing.

This book can act as the perfect supplementary tool to a teacher trying to teach this event. Only because of the original story More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 20, 2010

CH_Emily Scholnik rated it:

Appropriate for high school, 9th-12th grade.
This is a heart-wrenching and chilling poem about the young African-American boy whose terrifying fate helped to ignite the civil right's movement in the United States. Emmett Till was visiting family in Mississippi when he was brutally murdered for allegedly whistling at a white woman. This poem defines the anger and ignorance of the times as the murderer was acquited of this heinous crime. A must read! This would be a wonderful addition to More...

0 comments like

Aug 01, 2010

S10_Jessica rated it:

format: poetry book (heroic crown of sonnets)
age: grades 8-12

Nelson, M. (2005). A wreath for Emmett Till. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.
Honoring the tragic death of an African American boy named Emmett Till, Nelson has crafted a beautiful and rare heroic crown of sonnets – a sequence of fifteen interlinked sonnets in which the last line of one poem becomes the first in the next and the last sonnet is made up of the first lines of the preceding fourteen. Included in the bac More...

0 comments like

Mar 03, 2010

Madonnasharma rated it:

I was familiar with the terrible details of Emmett Till’s death and the effect this had on the Civil Rights movement. What I didn’t know was this challenging poem pattern that Nelson chose for her expression of the pain she felt for Emmett Till and his mother. The crown of sonnets that she links to share her emotions are very moving and sad. Nelson explained best when she said, “I wrote this poem with my heart in my mouth and tears in my eyes, breathless with anticipation and surprise.” Not o More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 14, 2010

Ch_beverlyatwood rated it:

This is an outstanding book, especially in this form of Petrarchan sonnet poetry. I appreciated that the author explained this form at the very beginning of the book and that helped me to understand the form and appreciate the creative, thought-provoking text of the poems. The heroic form of the sonnets, with the final poem consisting of the first lines of the other fourteen poems completes the circular pattern to the sonnet collection. The form is reflective of the tribute to Emmett Till who More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 30, 2011

Julia rated it:

This book is a heroic crown (fifteen interlinked sonnets on a single person or event) for and about Emmet Till, his murder and the aftermath.

“Emmet Till’s name still catches in my throat/ like the syllables in a stutterer’s mouth./”

He was a stutterer whose mother suggested he whistle when the words would not come. He was said to have whistled at a white woman.

“Thousands of oak trees around this country/ groaned with the weight of men slain for their race,/ More...

0 comments like

Feb 18, 2011

Jim rated it:

YES YES YES 6 star book
Why isn't this considered one of the best american books (of ANY genre) writen in past ten years? This book should be in damn near everylibrary in the USA. And should be taught in every poetry/creative writing class.
Read it aloud to jr. high, assign it to college students taking american history. Assume students are intelligent enough to to look up the references or take them to librarians that can teach them how. There are references to the Bible, Judy Ho More...

0 comments like

Oct 16, 2010

Q_Donna rated it:

A Wreath For Emmett Till is written as a sonnet. Marilyn Nelson told this story in her own words "with my heart in my mouth and tears in my eyes. The poems tell the story of Emmett Till and his brutal murder in Mississippi. He was accused of whistling at a white woman, which in those days was a huge crime. Five men chased him, beat him, chained him and threw his body in the Tallahatchie River. For many years this case stood at the forefront of the Civil Rights Movement. His mother spe More...

2 comments like

Mar 17, 2008

Hellokitty rated it:

The book that I read was "A Wreath for Emmett Till" the story was about a selection of short poems explained in deep meaning in the back of the book it gave the meaning of each short poem that related to Emmett Till. In the book it described the struggles of African-Americans back then and the separation of white and blacks also the world's reaction to the slaying of Emmett Till.It all happened by one day when young Emmett Till was in a store he whistled at a white woman who was More...

0 comments like

Oct 11, 2010

Julie rated it:

Nelson crafted an amazing work of art here with this melancholy, disturbing sonnet. I appreciate that she included educational supplementary materials; a synopsis of the Emmett Till story, commentary on all literary references to which she alludes, commentary on the poem itself, and insight into the writing process. Rich with symbolism, challenging vocabulary, and everything I love about poetry, I hope my more ambitious students will take the time to let Nelson take them where she wants them to More...

0 comments like

Jul 16, 2009

Jennifer rated it:

I was prompted to read this book by the rumor(false) that Emmett Till's grave had been robbed recently. Emmett Till was 14 years old when he was brutally killed by a group of white men after Emmett allegedly whistled at one of their wives. Emmett's mother held an open casket funeral for her son. The men were acquitted.

This book was written as a crown of sonnets. Each page contains a 14 line poem in iambic pentameter. The last line of each poem becomes the first line of th More...

0 comments like

Aug 07, 2011

Cathy rated it:

Marilyn Nelson has packed a powerful tale in a tiny package. A Wreath for Emmett Till is a book of poetry about lynching. Nelson's attention to detail is apparent from the onset; detail not only about Emmett Till and his place in history, but literary detail as well. The book is written as a Heroic Crown of Sonnets-fascinating stuff, look it up. I've been challenged by a friend to use this book throughout an entire semester-I will definitely give it a go, as so many literary layers make it a won More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 23, 2009

Libby rated it:

This book was as fascinating for its structure as its content. It tells the story of Emmett Till (in a non-graphic way, but still facing the truth of the horror) in a heroic crown of sonnets. This is a collection of 15 sonnets, 14 of which connect in a circle because the last line of each sonnet becomes the first line of the next. The 15th sonnet is made up of the first lines of the other 14--amazing planning and talent needed to create!

0 comments like

Feb 28, 2009

Karyn rated it:

This book honors Emmett Till through a crown of sonnets. the poetry and illustrations are beautiful. The poet refers to several other lynchings in history - some not so long ago. The notes in the back are very helpful in understanding some of the references in the poems. I had never heard of a crown of sonnets. To link the poems this way helped bring them all together and strengthened the bond of the theme for all the poems

0 comments like

Aug 05, 2010

Susan rated it:

Course evaluation:

Personal Response: I was speechless after reading this poem. It is tragic, beautiful, depressing and yet uplifting at the same time. I was already familiar with Emmett Till’s story and legacy, but Nelson’s poem has given me a new perspective. A poem has not affected me in this way in a very long time.

Evaluation: Nelson and Lardy frame the sonnets and illustrations in a very simple, straightforward fashion; each sonnet is centered on its own page and pair More...

0 comments like

May 17, 2010

Holly rated it:

This book evokes very strong emotions and spectacularly vivid images. The author utilizes beautiful and heart wrenching language that flows gracefully from sonnet to sonnet. The illustrations are interpretations of the words as opposed to descriptive images of a very tender and disturbing subject matter. They complement the sonnets beautifully and add to the emotion and tone of the writing.

0 comments like

Mar 14, 2010

Ch_wesley rated it:

This books of sonnets is dedicated to the rememberance of Emmett Till an African American boy who grew up in Chicago, but went to visit relatives in Money, Mississippi in 1955.He was brutally murdered by a group of white racist for alledgedly whistling at a white woman. Marilyn Nelson uses heroic crowns of sonnets to re-enact this chilling account of amazing brutality inflicted on a child.

1 comment like

reviews