Pocket Change Collective was born out of a need for space. Space to think. Space to connect. Space to be yourself. And this is your invitation to join us. I will close my eyes and disappear into the pages of this book for many years to come.–Hanif Abdurraqib (New York Times bestselling author of Go Ahead in The Rain: Notes to A Tribe Called Quest)

Amyra’s wondrous awe for life in all its terror and splendor is inspiring to witness.–Rosario Dawson (award-winning actor, singer, and activist)

A moving, inspiring love letter to and about ‘the concrete kids. The kids with a melanin kiss.’– Kirkus Reviews

Leon’s powerful book will embolden readers find their own ways of speaking out against injustice. – Booklist, Starred Review

A raw and complex free verse exploration of self-love, Blackness, womanhood, and healing. A timely, essential -purchase for all young adult collections. – School Library Journal, Starred Review

In Concrete Kids, playwright, musician, and educator Amyra Leon uses free verse to challenge us to dream beyond our circumstances – and sometimes even despite them.

Pocket Change Collective is a series of small books with big ideas from today’s leading activists and artists.

Concrete Kids is an exploration of love and loss, melody and bloodshed. Musician, playwright, and educator Amyra Leon takes us on a poetic journey through her childhood in Harlem, as she navigates the intricacies of foster care, mourning, self-love, and resilience. In her signature free-verse style, she invites us all to dream with abandon–and to recognize the privilege it is to dream at all.