For all the times I've read that this poet-friend of the Wright Brothers is best known for his dialect poems, I'd never really considered the corollary: that he was a fine poet in standard English as well. And what poems they are! If poetry is supposed to be a subjective and emotional art, Mr. Dunbar has mastered it. I felt my heart wrenched over more than one poem. This is a very nice volume to have if one wants a sampling of Mr. Dunbar's art in an inexpensive format. Dover has done a great job in the selection, balancing the dialect poems and the standard English ones. If you only want one volume from this poet, this is the one to get.

Amerika Jones has a beautiful voice but its wasted on her renditions of the dialect poems...as typical of most Dunbar orators I have heard the dialect is delivered in the most stiff, over or un-dramatic styles...its terrible whats out their, I wanted this tape to be wonderful...I love and have a deep respect for his works... but this production does no justice to the beauty of his words. Audio tape of Dunbars dialect poetry, are available if you would like to hear the "character" in his poems and not the "Amos and Andy caricature"...

"I Know What The Caged Bird Feels" could easily have been called "The Best of Paul Laurence Dunbar's Poems" because these poems are all my favorites. Ameria Jones' reading of the poems is well-paced, energetic, sensitive and very satisfying. I look forward to what I hope will be a second volume of Dunbar's poems available on Amazon.com. I would never have found this treasure trove of his poetry in a regular book store.