Gwendolyn Brooks

Gwendolyn Brooks (1917–2000) was an American poet and author, and she was the first African American poet to win the Pulitzer Prize (1950). Brooks was appointed Poet Laureate of Illinois in 1968, named the Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress for 1985 to 1986, and became the first African American woman inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Brooks’ writings varied greatly in style, but all followed the similar theme of dealing with the hardships of those in her community.