A Book About Things I Will Tell My Daughter

by Joel L. Daniels

"I love the shit out of my daughter. I want to change the world, with words. This started as affirmations for Lilah, which turned into prayers, which turned into love letters, which turned into essays, which turned into poems, which then turned into all of the above. This has been written in the same vein as Claudia Rankine's Citizen, for context. I wanted to write something that could document my experience as a single father, a single Black father, raising a soon-to-be 2-year-old Afro-Latina in the 45th era. I wanted her to know me, and know herself, with the hope that it would help fathers learn their own daughters, and learn themselves, too." -Joel L. Daniels Joel L. Daniels is a storyteller, born and raised in the Bronx. He was the recipient of the Bronx Council of the Arts BRIO Award for poetry, and his work has been featured in the Columbia Journal, Cafe.com, The Boston Globe, CNN Money, The Towner, Fatherly, Thought Catalog, Philadelphia Printworks, The Smoking Section, Blavity, Huffington Post, BBC Radio, RCRD LBL, URB, BRM, AllHipHop, The Source, RESPECT, and HipHopDX. He's spoken/performed at the Apollo Theater, Joe's Pub, Rockwood Music Hall, Columbia University, Lehman College, City Tech, The National Black Theater, NYU, Webster Hall, Pianos, and Brooklyn Bowl.

Genres: Poetry

74 pages, Paperback

Reviews

[Niki Rowland]

Joel is the reason why I started writing again and I owe so much to him. After waiting months for this book to arrive, I can confidently say that it was beyond worth the wait. My heart melted in every page and I will carry with me Joel’s love for Lilah everywhere I go.

[Nia Ita]

This is a beautiful collection of poetry that is exactly what it claims to be, “a book about things I will tell my daughter.” From the patois and Black English to the Spanish, the languages braided into this poetry are rich in history, culture, and context. I found pieces of home scattered throughout. I found myself reflecting on my own relationship with my father and the things he still tells me to this day. Joel paints pictures and emotion onto the hearts of readers with each page. The love in this book is palpable. I believe this will be one of those books I continue to revisit in the future.

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