To celebrate National Poetry Month, and to begin blogging again, I intend to post an original poem each day. As I originally intended for this blog to be used for book reviews, I will highlight a book via poetry, each day.
Seven word poem…
Surrounded by beautiful differences,
You fit in.
You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You by Mary Ann Hoberman
This book of “very short stories to read together”, illustrated by Michael Emberley, is really a book of poems. They are color-coded to show which parts I read, which parts you read, and which parts we read together. “I Hate My Hat” is one of my favorites!
A Pocketful of Poems by Nikki Grimes
This poetry book alternates between free-verse and haiku. Each new topic is illustrated and has one of each type of poem. The illustrations by Javaka Steptoe combine paper cut-outs and three-dimensional objects.
Science Verse by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith
Scieszka and Smith explore (exploit?) various poems through scientific parodies. They cover the digestive system, evolution, black holes, food chains, matter and more. You will recognize the framework from many of the poems! Read “‘Twas the Night Before Anything” for their interpretation of the Big Bang theory and “Astronaut Stopping By a Planet on a Snowy Evening.” Fun stuff!
My man Blue by Nikki Grimes
This picture book by Nikki Grimes, was illustrated by Jerome Lagarrigue in acrylics. While it is written in poetry form, and each poem can stand alone, the book really tells a story about a boy, Damon, who eventually accepts his mom’s “old friend.” Together, they face a class bully, anger, fear, and trust.
Here in Harlem: poems in many voices by Walter Dean Myers
In this tribute to W. B. Yeats, Walter Dean Myers captures a vignette of Harlem. Through 54 poems, Myers introduces the different people that made up the community of his childhood home, and gives voice to each of them. Some of the people represented through poem include: a retiree, a nanny, some students, a janitor, a hairdresser, and a street vendor.
Dark emperor & other poems of the night by Joyce Sidman
This picture book by Joyce Sidman, and illustrated by Rick Allen is a picture book, a non-fiction book, and a poetry book all in one. Allen illustrated using “relief printing” which involves blocks of linoleum, ink, and in this case gouache (an intense watercolor). Sidman alternated between poetry that focuses on nature and a non-fiction explanation of the living things mentioned in the poem.
Snow, snow: winter poems for children by Jane Yolen
Photography by Jane Yolen’s son, Jason Stemple, is highlighted in this book. Yolen wrote 13 poems to go along with, and inspired by, the photography. The style of each poem varies, but the topic is the same: they are all about snow.
The Read-e-ologist 