Nikki Grimes Books In Order

Publication Order of Danitra Brown Books

Publication Order of Dyamonde Daniel Books

Publication Order of Garvey Books

Publication Order of Oh, Bother! Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Picture Books

Publication Order of Collections

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of Jerry Pinkney as Illustrator Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Nikki Grimes is a bestselling author of children’s fiction and inspirational fiction in addition to some critically acclaimed poetry.

Surprisingly, the 2022 Virginia Lifetime Achievement award-winning author never considered herself a bonafide storyteller. She believes she has always been is a good poet, even though she had become known as a prolific artist and bestselling author.
Over the years, Nikki Grimes has penned all manner of award-winning fiction for young adults and children. She is also the author of numerous novels and picture books including “Barack Obama,” which would become a New York Times bestselling title.
In addition to her children’s fiction works she has also been featured in the likes of the “Journal of Religion & Art,” “Essence,” “Image,” “Book Links,” and “Today’s Christian Woman.”

Given her reputation, she frequently conducts poetry lectures and poetry readings at international schools across the globe.

During the 1970s, she was the host and coproducer of WBAI FM’s “The Kid’s Show.” She was also the host of “Grunslost,” a Swedish Educational Radio program for immigrants when she lived in Sweden.

Most of Nikki Grimes’s novels are a reflection of her experience living as an African American woman in New York during the 60s. She published “Growin’” her debut novel in 1977.

Grimes began writing as a six-year-old as she loved words and languages. She was always fascinated by the notion that one word could have all manner of meanings.

During this time, she used to do all manner of word jumbles, puzzles, and games. She used to take a dictionary and pick words to see if she was able to pick out all the different meanings and how to use the word.

Born and raised in Harlem in New York, she first attended a Countee Cullen library poetry reading when she was six years old. The library often held poetry reading sessions for young poets, most of who were older than she was at the time.
When she was thirteen, her father signed her up and encouraged her to be brave by looking into his eyes when she did her first reading. She would then get a lot of encouragement from her father and sister who she was living with.
In fact, she credits her sister for being embarrassingly supportive and always saying she would one day be a renowned poet.

Whenever Nikki Grimes wrote something even if it was in the middle of the night, her sister would always be there to listen to her read it.

While she is now a renowned author and poet, Nikki Grimes still works very hard. Whenever she is home, she will usually write six days a week during the early mornings.

In fact, her car and house are full of notepads as she can often get ideas from anywhere and at any time. She usually feels her ideas better when she writes on a pad that she will then ultimately write into a word processor on her computer for editing.
Once she is done writing, she usually gets the manuscript to teachers and other writer friends that she trusts for feedback.

She is also part of an arts group that comprises columnists, writers, essayists, painters, composers, and sculptors that has been going strong for more than two decades.

She will often read excerpts of her novels and poems to the group for feedback and then take some notes before editing her work.
She takes her editing very seriously and always ensures that it has been seen by another set of eyes and combed through thoroughly by herself before it is published.

Nikki Grimes’s novel “Make Way for Dyamonde Daniel” is a work that introduced the lead as a third grader with crazy wild hair who is also as skinny as a toothpick.
The saving grace is that she is also fun and brilliant but this has not yet been able to solve her biggest problem.

What she really needs and wants is a best friend but no one at her new school seems interested in the position.

But then she is lucky that another new kid joins her class but he just happens to be the rudest, mopiest, and grumpiest kid Dyamonde has ever dealt with. It does not take long before she wants to understand what his problem is.
Soon enough they are fast friends as she investigates her new friend trying to cheer him up. Dyamonde Daniel is an interesting character with a good heart.

Nonetheless, this does not take away from the other characters and themes Grimes tackles such as the lack of apartment space, divorce, and unemployment.

Nikki writes about a plucky third-grade girl who has to face the pain of poverty and divorce but still manages to navigate the rigors of school, make a lot of friends and have empathy and inclusion on her radar.

“Rich” by Nikki Grimes follows the spirited young African American girl that was introduced in the first novel of the series. Dyamonde’s best friend is a girl named Fee who always had a desire for more money.
Free and Dyamonde are excited to participate in a school poetry contest as the winner is set to get published in the newspaper and receive a prize of $100.

Free has been dreaming of how she would spend the prize money if she is the winner but Damaris participates in the contest for a very different purpose.

Dyamonde finds Damaris’ entry into the competition weird and wants to understand her motivation and soon enough discovers that there is more to life than money or being rich.

The work explains what it is to be homeless and poor in a way that learned can relate to. The author also does a very good job of giving insights into aspects of sympathy and exploring Damaris’ character.
It also emphasizes that friendship can be important in enriching lives, even if the people involved do not have much money.

Nikki Grimes’s “Almost Zero” continues to follow third grader Dyamonde Daniel and her new classmate Tameeka.

The latter has recently gotten new sneakers and has been telling Dyamonde that her mother needs to get her new ones too since it is her job to get her whatever she needs.

Upon arriving home, she demands that her mother get her the latest sneakers. When she comes back home from school the following day, she finds her room empty.

It turns out that her mother has hidden all her playthings and is only providing her with the bare necessities that she really needs.

Dyamonde is frustrated and does not understand what is happening until the house of one of her classmates burns down. She knows her friend really needs clothes and donates some of her extra ones to her.
It makes for great work that teaches students about not being too hung up on material possessions. It is also effective at teaching learners the difference between needs and wants.