Crown Aint Worth Much

Poetry. African American Studies. "Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib's THE CROWN AIN'T WORTH MUCH leaves me contemplating the meanings of soul: communal soul (peep the breadth of cultural shout outs), rhythmic soul (peep the breadth of sound and syntax), and spiritual soul (peep the breadth of compassion). As titles like 'Ode to Drake, Ending with Blood in a Field' and 'At the House Party Where We Found Out Whitney Houston Was Dead' suggest, Willis-Abdurraqib bridges the bravado and bling of praise with the blood and tears of elegy. The soul of this magnificent book is dynamic, distinguished, and when called for, down and dirty. What a fresh, remarkable debut." Terrance Hayes "Willis-Abdurraqib possesses a striking gift for merging pop culture with personal narrative." Publishers Weekly "To pinpoint a highlight of the book is impossible. Every poem is honed, polished, and presented with utter rawness and defiance." Portland Book Review "THE CROWN AIN'T WORTH MUCH is not so much a book you read, but one you survive with Willis- Abdurraqib's compassionate, elegiac lyric gently pushing you forward through heartbreak and violence." Indiana Review "The poems are raw: some passionate, some distant, some laden with fear. But as a collection, they create a life that's almost as arresting as it is moving." Kelsey McKinney, Fusion"

The Crown Ain t Worth Much, Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib s first full-length collection, is a sharp and vulnerable portrayal of city life in the United States. A regular columnist for MTV.com, Willis-Abdurraqib brings his interest in pop culture to these poems, analyzing race, gender, family, and the love that finally holds us together even as it threatens to break us. Terrance Hayes writes that Willis-Abdurraqib bridges the bravado and bling of praise with the blood and tears of elegy. The poems in this collection are challenging and accessible at once, as they seek to render real human voices in moments of tragedy and celebration."

2017 Eric Hoffer Book Award - Poetry Honorable Mention
2017 Eric Hoffer Book Award - Grand Prize Short List
2017 Hurston/Wright Legacy Award Nominee

The Crown Ain't Worth Much, Hanif Abdurraqib's first full-length collection, is a sharp and vulnerable portrayal of city life in the United States. A regular columnist for MTV.com, Abdurraqib brings his interest in pop culture to these poems, analyzing race, gender, family, and the love that finally holds us together even as it threatens to break us. Terrance Hayes writes that Abdurraqib "bridges the bravado and bling of praise with the blood and tears of elegy." The poems in this collection are challenging and accessible at once, as they seek to render real human voices in moments of tragedy and celebration.