Gwendolyn Brooks didn't let life's obstacles slow her down. In fact, Brooks used his obstacles to his advantage and sprinted towards the finish line. Gwendolyn faced financial hardship and limited opportunities due to her racial background. However, Brooks had many accomplishments and used his African-American heritage to become one of America's finest poetic writers. Gwendolyn Brooks said her poetry was written for black people and for black people, but any person, regardless of race, can relate to the universal themes depicted in her pieces. Gwendolyn Brooks lived a life full of warm relationships and happy memories. On June 7, 1917, David and Keziah Brooks welcomed their first child, Gwendolyn Brooks, into the world. Although she was born in Topeka, Kan., Gwendolyn considered herself a “Chicago”; Brooks' family moved to Chicago shortly after Gwendolyn's birth. The Brooks family was financially limited, but according to Kenny Jackson Williams, they made up the financial gap through "warm interpersonal relationships." Gwendolyn attended her hometown's leading white school, Hyde Park High School. Later, Gwendolyn transferred to Wendell Phillips High School, which was an all-black school. With racial segregation decreasing, the two high schools integrated into Englewood High School. Gwendolyn graduated from Wilson Jr. College in 1936. Constantly transferring schools gave Gwendolyn insight into racial dynamics in urban life. In 1938, Gwendolyn Brooks married Henry Blakely. Together they had two children; Henry Jr. was born in 1940 and Nora in 1951. When it comes to Gwendolyn Brooks' literary life, she has been very successful. In 1930, Gwendolyn published her first poem, Eventide, in American Childh...... middle of paper...... On File, Inc., 2007. Bloom's Literature. Facts about File, Inc. Web. May 7, 2014. Melhem, DH “A street in Bronzeville”. Gwendolyn Brooks: Poetry and the Heroic Voice, (Lexington, Kentucky: The University Press of Kentucky, 1987): pp. 37-39. Cited as "The Queen's Themes" in Harold Bloom, ed. Gwendolyn Brooks, Bloom's major poets. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishing, 2002. (Updated 2007.) Bloom's Literature. Facts about File, Inc. Web. May 7, 2014. Williams, Kenny Jackson. “The Life and Career of Gwendolyn Brooks.” Modern American Poetry. The Oxford Companion to African American Literature, 1997. Web. May 06 2014. .