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1. This link will connect you to a 1979 interview with Gwendolyn Brooks, in which she discusses her appreciation of the visual element of poetry. Read "The Bean Eaters" silently to yourself. When you read it aloud, do you feel differently about the language and the imagery? Is the appearance of the words on the page as powerful as the sound of those words?
2. Is this your first experience of Gwendolyn Brooks's poetry? Did you know that she wrote poetry for children? Visit this link to see a comprehensive bibliography of her work. Do you think there are certain aspects in Brooks's poetry that would make her a good poet for younger readers? What are they?