Gwendolyn Brooks would have turned 100 this week and we’re out supporting BROOKSFEST in Topeka, KS. This centennial celebration of her life and legacy features HBW friend Kevin Young, a poetry walk, children’s activities, and much more.

Here are some of our favorite tributes to Gwendolyn Brooks

A Peek at Gwendolyn Brooks’s Chicago, Then and Now – Adam Morgan

A Surprised Queenhood in the New Black Sun: The Life & Legacy of Gwendolyn Brooks (Book) – Angela Jackson

Against Miracles – Evie Shockley

Remembering the Great Poet Gwendolyn Brooks at 100 – Code Switch NPR

We Real Cool (Video) 

Also, in 2015 as part of our annual Black Literary Suite we reflected on the legacy of Gwendolyn Brooks in Kansas (as well as Kevin Young’s connection). You can check out the full audiovisual exhibit here.

For more info and resources on Brooks and Black poetry, check out our past NEH summer institutes Black Poetry After the Black Arts Movement and Don’t Deny My Voice: Reading and Teaching African American Poetry.