ReadersMagnet gathers these amazing poetry books from authors of various races, colors, and ethnicity.

Poetry in Motion by Raymond Quattlebaum


Poetry in Motion Quattlebaum book is not your ordinary devotional collection of poems. Raymond Quattlebaum’s unique prose and verses reflect his passion and life. Just like his other masterpiece, The Color of Love, Poetry in Motion tackle one man’s perspective on life, faith, the movement and journey, and the everyday wonders and grace of God. Using his own words, Quattlebaum talks about the great circle of life and beauty. Expressive and full of metal visualizations, Poetry in Motion by Raymond Quattlebaum is a 54-page full of pure energy, positivity, gratitude, worship, and faith in God’s mercy and miracles that we so often ignore on a daily basis. Quattlebaum’s remarkable poems remind us that each one of us should be personally thankful to God and His constant presence.

That Was Now, This is Then by Vijay Seshadri


That Was Now, This is Then is the latest collection of poems from master poet Vijay Seshadri. Seshadri is an award-winning poet (2014 Pulitizer for Poetry, 3 Sections), essayist, and literary critic. In this fourth collection, Vijay Seshadri shares planar paradoxes of time and space and complex lyrics and elegies as he talks about ‘unrequitable longing, of longing for longing, of longing to be found, of grief.’ Seshadri takes us to another compelling journey into human emotions such as joy and loss and the inexhaustible grief for things that we have lost and missed. That Was Now, This is Then is another classic work from one of America’s remarkable modern poets.

Letters to a Young Brown Girl by Barbara Jane Reyes


The Philippines is home to many passionate women poets. One of the country’s contemporary Filipina poets is Barbara Jane Reyes. Since 2005, Reyes has published six poetry books. In 2020, she released her latest collection, Letters to a Young Brown Girl. In this book, Reyes shares to us passionate verses and liberating prose that ‘answers the questions of Filipino American girls and young women of color with bold affirmations of hard-won empathy, fierce intelligence, and a fine-tuned B.S. detector.’ This collection of new masterpieces is aimed not just for her fellow Filipinas but also for every woman who is sick and tired of being told what ought to be and what shouldn’t be, for those who are saying ‘enough’ of the exploitations and violence. Letters to a Young Brown Girl by Barbara Jane Reyes is bold and unforgettable poetry.


A Nail the Evening Hangs On by Monica Sok


Monica Sok is a Cambodian-American Poet. Her debut book, A Nail the Evening Hangs On, is a rivetting collection of real and imagined narratives. In this rare masterpiece, Monica Sok turns to poetry to retell a family’s memoir of the Khmer Rouge regime from children refugees’ eyes. Drawing inspiration from Cambodia’s rich myths and fable-making tradition, Sok covers the effects of the genocide and continuing trauma and struggles of the people who have experienced it, and how it has transformed the new generations of Cambodians, even those who were able to flee the country and began a new life in foreign lands. A Nail the Evening Hangs On by Monica Sok is a journey that is also a healing of wounds and embracing new and hopeful beginnings. It is a book that all Cambodians and refugees must-read.


The Octopus Museum by Brenda Shaughnessy


Brenda Shaughnessy is an award-winning poet and associate professor born in Okinawa and was raised in Southern California. She is the James Laughlin Award recipient, a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, and New York Times Notable Book in 2013 for her published books. In 2019, Shaughnessy published a collection of poems entitled The Octopus Museum. In this one-of-a-kind collection, Shaughnessy takes on the many fears of children. From the reasonable ones like being in a car accident or falling from a treetop to school shootings, nuclear attack, loss of health care, a polluted planet. The latter fears are, of course, products of our rapidly changing world. Children are now seeing the consequences of our being irresponsible. The Octopus Museum by Brenda Shaughnessy is one funny but true collection of narratives that stare back at us in the face.