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    Ordinary Hazards: A Memoir
    Ordinary Hazards: A Memoir
    Ordinary Hazards: A Memoir
    Audiobook4 hours

    Ordinary Hazards: A Memoir

    Written by Nikki Grimes

    Narrated by Nikki Grimes

    4.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    In her own voice, acclaimed author and poet Nikki Grimes explores the truth of a harrowing childhood in a compelling and moving memoir in verse. Growing up with a mother suffering from paranoid schizophrenia and a mostly absent father, Nikki Grimes found herself terrorized by babysitters, shunted from foster family to foster family, and preyed upon by those she trusted. At the age of six, she poured her pain onto a piece of paper late one night - and discovered the magic and impact of writing. For many years, Nikki's notebooks were her most enduing companions. In this accessible and inspiring memoir that will resonate with young readers and adults alike, Nikki shows how the power of those words helped her conquer the hazards - ordinary and extraordinary - of her life.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateDec 10, 2019
    ISBN9781980043058
    Ordinary Hazards: A Memoir
    Author

    Nikki Grimes

    New York Times bestselling author Nikki Grimes is the recipient of the 2016 Virginia Hamilton Literary Award and the 2006 NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children. Her distinguished works include ALA Notable book What is Goodbye?, Coretta Scott King Award winner Bronx Masquerade, and Coretta Scott King Author Honor books Jazmin's Notebook, Talkin' About Bessie, Dark Sons, The Road to Paris, and Words with Wings. Creator of the popular Meet Danitra Brown, Ms. Grimes lives in California.

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    Reviews for Ordinary Hazards

    4.5/5

    48 ratings8 reviews

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    • 5/5
      This was a book I could not stop reading. Thank goodness I am retired and if I want to read something straight through I can do that! Which is exactly how I read this lovely book. It is not an easy story to read, but I believe most readers come to love the author's work, and will enjoy this book for it's unusual style, and its very inspiring story.
    • 4/5
      Powerful memoir, stark and hard and full of Grimes’ enduring will to live and to succeed at her dream of becoming a professional writer. Her truth comes through.
    • 4/5
      adult/teen diverse memoir in verse (childhood trauma growing up in nyc with mostly absent dad, mom with alcoholism/schizophrenia, 2 foster families, and abusive stepdad).
      *reviewed by uncorrected galley *

      a quick read (only takes a couple hours or so) but compelling and full of hope--Nikki of course turned her love of books and writing into a very successful career, and even gets to rub elbows with the likes of James Baldwin, but she had to survive a lot to get there.
      Nikki Grimes, thank you for sharing your story.
    • 4/5
      This memoir from Nikki Grimes about her youth in New York during the 1950s-1960s was beautifully written, heartbreaking, and full of hope. Written in poetry with interspersed pieces entitled Notebook that feel like a journal entries from the time. Her ability to use pain in her art, find determination and drive to succeed, and work through trauma (she talks about gaps in her memories as a result of childhood trauma) is laid bare in this telling of her life from early memory through high school.
    • 4/5
      This memoir is written in verse and was really quite lovely. Grimes had a traumatic childhood. She had to deal with her mother's paranoid schizophrenia and alcoholism. Her father was absent most of the time. She moved around a lot and endured so much pain and heartache. The two things that saved her and kept her strong were her belief in God and her passion and ability for writing and reading. Instead of writing a long review, I am just going to post some quotes from the books. My words wouldn’t do hers justice. "No one warned me life was full of ordinary hazards." "Winter was welcome. When I shivered from heartbreak, I could blame the cold." "Down in my bones, I knew I was one of the sparrows God keeps his eye on, and I was pretty sure he was saving me for something. I just didn't know what.""Who needs to see the movie Psycho? Just stop by our house. Don't ask for popcorn, though. We are fresh out.""My life is like musical chairs. Every time the music plays, I have to move. I wonder if I'll ever get to stay in one place longer than three or four years.""Writing was a lonely business.""Pent up anger proved a dangerous thing, and I could no longer allow it."Regarding her mother: "She slammed my heart in the door of her words.""I want to write books about some of the darkness I've seen, real stories and real people, you know? But I also want to write about the light, because I've seen that, too. That place of light-it's not always easy to get to, but it's there. It's there."
    • 5/5
      As a reader of Bronx Masquerade and Between the Lines, I waited patiently, maybe not that patiently, for my hold to arrive at the library. Of course, I picked it up immediately and I am so glad I did! Nikki Grimes’s Ordinary Hazards is written in verse, which brought me into her living with a mother who is schizophrenic and an alcoholic, a step dad who cannot keep a job and is less than of high character with his step daughter, and gangs throughout the neighborhoods.

      Nikki uses writing to help her survive her traumatic childhood. She connects with her biological father and experiences hope attending the symphony watching her father play the violin, meeting authors, and watching movies where she could “have a chance to see all there was of black beauty and music and magic in the world” (280).

      Her father passed away, but her sister and teacher believe in her writing talents. Their belief, along with her memories of her father’s belief and love, push her dream into fruition. What an amazing memoir to share with those who think their dreams may not be possible! Nikki Grimes’s pushes through and you can, too! A dream truly can become reality with persistence, strength, and determination!
    • 3/5
      Nikki’s memoir is written primarily in poetry. It covers her youth 1950-1966. Her father gambled, her mother was alcoholic and schizophrenic. At age 5, Nikki and her sister Carol were sent to foster care and later separated. Searing, honest and raw, but resilient and hopeful.
    • 5/5
      Nikki Grimes puts the memories of her childhood into poetry, telling of her mentally ill mother, her time in foster care, and her relationships with other members of her family as she grew into a writer.