Beautiful. And Ugly Too (Africa World Press, 2005)
by M.K. Asante, Jr.

Beautiful. And Ugly Too, the critically-acclaimed, second poetry collection from award-winning author and filmmaker M.K. Asante, Jr., reveals, through its delicate rhythm, the plurality of being alive. Based on the Langston Hughes essay "The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain," Asante's poems, sketched from influences and drawn from experiences around the world, are colorful portraits that reveal the spectrum of human conditions.

A thought provoking journey down the lonely road of wisdom and whiplash."
—Los Angeles Times

To be sure, Asante's second book of poetry, Beautiful. And Ugly Too, penetrates, casting an unflinching eye on humanity through a historical kaleidoscope."
—The Philadelphia Inquirer

The scarred histories and beautiful ideals of a new generation. It seems as though if we follow his pen, we might each be able to climb our own mountains."
—UCLA Daily Bruin