Arna Bontemps - a noted Black poet, author, anthologist, librarian - was born in Alexandria, Louisiana on October 13, 1902.

He is credited with writing over 20 books, plays, and anthologies and was considered the leading authority on the Harlem Renaissance.

He was part of a core of young Black writers who led the "New Negro" movement. Bontemps wanted a front row seat to view and participate in the stirrings of jazz, theater and literature taking place in Harlem.

His scholarly interest in fostering a new appraisal of his race and re-evaluation of the Black man's place in American history is just a part of his legacy.

His children's books are unique and his poetry and writings convey the rhythms and richness of the African American culture which was to influence a number of writers who followed him. (Edwin Blair. "Literary Habitats." Preservation in Print. September 1996.)