In May, Forman and Bowers teamed up again to release “ Glow,” a poetry book for Black boys. A page from 'Curls' (Illustration by Geneva Bowers) “I just want to try to equip my daughter and the children in this generation as much as possible with that sense of self-love, self-worth, knowing who they are so that when these things do come, it will not harm them in the way that I think it's harmed many generations,” Forman says.

A page from 'Curls' (Illustration by Geneva Bowers)įorman says she’s taking news like that one step at a time and working to do her part to ensure people like her daughter understand that their hair is normal hair. Recently at the Tokyo Olympics, soul caps - swimming caps designed for curly hair - were banned by the International Swimming Federation. Today, controversy still surrounds Black and Brown hair. But I really realized how important literature was when we read her those books,” she says. When her daughter first started this conversation years ago, Forman called on family and friends to send books that celebrated Black hair and skin. As a poet, Forman also considered how the words would fit together in terms of rhyme, meter and pacing. The book itself would need to be short, too, to keep the children’s attention and be a good read for bedtime. Writing the book involved a number of elements, especially considering it was for children. The cover of 'Curls' (Illustration by Geneva Bowers) The book includes colorful illustrations by Geneva Bowers. This hurtful moment with her daughter led Forman to publish “ Curls,” a poetry board book for Black children that encouraged them to embrace their identity, last December. The young girl said that she wished she had straighter hair and lighter skin. Poet Ruth Forman remembers her daughter coming home from preschool one day and saying something shocking. A page from 'Curls' (Illustration by Geneva Bowers) This article is more than 1 year old.Įditor's note: This segment was rebroadcast on Feb.

Curls by ruth forman