Piecing Me Together, on the other hand, is a quieter read. It pulls no punches it rips your heart out it says what needs to be said. The Hate U Give is a hard-hitting book about one of the most horrific problems facing America today: the shooting of unharmed, black teenagers. Both books look at what it means to be a black teen in modern America, but their tones and focal points are different. It released during Black History Month, and was perhaps overshadowed by the buzz surrounding the amazing The Hate U Give that followed up a month later. Piecing Me Together is such an important and moving book. I wonder if there’s ever a way for a girl like me to feel whole. Renée graduated from The New School, where she studied Creative Writing and earned a certificate in Drama Therapy.Īnd this makes me wonder if a black girl’s life is only about being stitched together and coming undone, being stitched together and coming undone. She has facilitated poetry and theatre workshops with young girls coping with sexual and physical abuse, children who have witnessed violence, children coping with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and children who relocated to New York City after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. One of Renée’s passions is using the arts to help youth cope with trauma.

She also facilitates professional development workshops for teachers and artists. Renée has worked in public schools and community organizations as an artist in residence for several years, teaching poetry, fiction, and theater in Oregon, Louisiana, and New York City. When Renée is not writing and performing, she is teaching. Her poetry and articles have been published in Rethinking Schools, Theatre of the Mind and With Hearts Ablaze. Renée’s one woman show, Roses are Red, Women are Blue, debuted at New York City's Lincoln Center at a showcase for emerging artists. Her middle grade novel, What Momma Left Me debuted as the New Voice for 2010 in middle grade fiction by The Independent Children's Booksellers Association. Renée Watson is the author of the children’s picture book, A Place Where Hurricanes Happen (Random House, June 2010), which was featured on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams.

Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson