EVERYTHING COMES NEXT Collected & New Poems

Young People's Poet Laureate Naomi Shihab Nye is a warm and comforting guide though this collection of her poems. Just because these are poems for young listeners doesn't mean that they're not sophisticated. Nye reflects on everything from a lost, and found, Christmas present in "Yellow Glove" to travelers overcoming barriers of language and culture with kindness and sweets in "Gate A-4." Nye's father was Palestinian, and several poems explore Palestine's liminal state and the intimate losses Palestinians have experienced. The accessibility of the writing and of Nye's delivery makes for easy listening, but resist the urge to binge: These poems and ideas should be savored, pondered over, listened to again, and talked about together. J.M.D. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2020]