The Makings of You

Candid and sensitive, this collection journeys between Africa, Europe, and the Americas as the poet explores his family history. Told with wit and an engaging ambivalence, these narrative poems explore areas of imaginative fantasy, including a consideration of how the slave trade would have been different had its main mode of transportation been the hot-air balloon rather than the slave ship. Touching on both pain and rich rewards from the perspective of a black British poet, this volume's goal is to entertain, instruct, and encourage contemplation.

Nii Ayikwei Parkes is the senior editor at Flipped Eye Publishing and a contributing editor at the Liberal. He is a performance poet and the author of Eyes of a Boy, Lips of a Man; M is for Madrigal; and Tail of the Blue Bird. He is the recipient of the Arts Critics and Reviewers Association of Ghana Award for poetry and literary advocacy.