Alexander, Kwame << KWAH mee >> (1968-…), is an American writer of books and poetry for children and young adults. He won the 2015 Newbery Medal for his verse novel The Crossover (2014). A verse novel is a novel-length work written in verse (poetry) rather than in prose. The book tells the story of 12-year-old twin brothers who share a passion for basketball but find themselves drifting apart as they enter junior high school. The Newbery Medal is awarded annually to an outstanding children’s book by an American. Alexander also wrote the verse novel Booked (2016), which tells the story of a 12-year-old soccer player who discovers the power of reading. Rebound (2018), a verse novel illustrated with graphic novel panels, is a prequel to The Crossover. A prequel is a story that precedes a previously released book or film. In 2019, The Crossover was published as a graphic novel.
Edward Curtis Kwame Alexander II was born on Aug. 21, 1968, in the New York City borough of Manhattan, New York. He grew up in the New York City borough of Brooklyn and in Chesapeake, Virginia. Alexander graduated in 1990 from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University with a B.A. degree in psychology, English, and Black studies. He also studied poetry there under the American poet Nikki Giovanni. Alexander published his first book, Just Us: Poems & Counterpoems, 1986-1995, a collection of poetry, in 1995.
Alexander’s other notable works include the poetry collection Crush: Love Poems for Teenagers (2007) and the children’s book Acoustic Rooster and His Barnyard Band (2011, illustrated by Tim Bowers). They also include the young adult novels Solo (2017) and Swing (2018), both written in free verse with Mary Rand Hess; the picture book Surf’s Up (2016, illustrated by Daniel Miyares); and How to Read a Book (2019), a poetry picture book about the joy of reading. The Door of No Return (2022) is a historical novel in verse. An American Story (2023, illustrated by Dare Coulter) is a picture book about discussing American slavery in a classroom.
Alexander has written and edited a number of nonfiction books. For example, The Undefeated (2019, illustrated by Kadir Nelson) is a poetry picture book that pays tribute to the lives and history of African Americans. Light for the World to See: A Thousand Words on Race and Hope (2020) is a book of poetry that addresses the issue of racial inequality.
Alexander has owned a number of publishing companies. He is the founding director of Book-in-a-Day, a literacy project that teaches students the fundamentals of creative writing and book publishing. In 2018, he published The Write Thing, a guide for writing teachers based on the workshops.
