Journeys of Freedom

About the Book

“Journeys of Freedom,” unlike “What I Know…Poems of Life,” is not a roller coaster ride of emotions, but more of a funhouse of mirrors. Depending on the reader’s perspective, each poem reflects life experiences and pokes fun at the contorted nuances often missed by inexperienced observers. The poems of “Journeys of Freedom” are compiled of life lessons designed to take readers on physical and mental journeys, journeys of observation, journeys of life, journeys of change, journeys of growth, and of course, journeys of freedom.

About the Author

Y.B. TAYLOR was born the same year as the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision, Brown v. the Board of Education. She lives in Richmond, Virginia; is married and the mother of two adult daughters. She has experienced segregation, legislated busing, being the ‘first’ and ‘one of a few’. In 1966, she was one of six black students who integrated Albert H. Hill Junior High. As a result of legislated busing, her last two years of senior high school were spent in the newly annexed area of Richmond. At Huguenot High, she claimed a place in the school’s history as its first black varsity cheerleader, first black homecoming queen and first black to write a regular column, “Yonnie Bee’s Bag,” for the student-run newspaper. Y.B. Taylor received her B.A. in Afro American Studies from the University of Virginia, 19-years after Walter N. Ridley became the university’s first African American to earn a degree and 4-years after undergraduate admissions was fully open to women. She feels she best expresses herself in written words. History, personal challenges and experiences as well as observations and stories told to her by older family members and friends are reflected in her writing.