Today’s Poem is a Tanka. (Syllable pattern 5-7-5-7-7).
Coffee nut latte?
Maybe that makes Cam perfect
For Em (or does it?)
Espressology’s a hit.
People want love and lattes.
Category Archives: teen books
Poetry Month – Day 8
This is a Kyrielle poem in response to Sharon Draper’s most recent book Panic (which I began and completed today).
DIAMOND
Though people tell of the danger,
Say “Never talk to a stranger”,
It was in public – light of day,
So She went with him anyway.
He was professionally dressed,
His intentions kept full at bay,
He portrayed a family-man (blessed)
So She went with him anyway.
She didn’t have nary a clue
Of the nasty things he would do,
Or the way the acts he’d display,
So She went with him anyway.
He claimed a daughter and a wife,
His evil plan not on display.
She wasn’t concerned for her life,
So She went with him anyway.
Poetry Month – Day 6
This is a “Found Poem” which is like a word-collage. I pulled some words and phrases from pages 98-100 of
The Smart Aleck’s Guide to American History, and arranged them into this:
Whig on a penny
Depression
Grew up to be
on the five-dollar bill.
Hated by some
Abraham Lincoln
Crippling anxiety
“Good Guys” and “Bad Guys” on both sides
States’ rights
Not all Southerners favored
Articles of Secession
Tariff disputes
Stovepipe Hat
End slavery
Poetry Month Day 3 – Bronx Masquerade
Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes (Poetry Style: Joseph’s Star)
Ward,
Teacher-Man,
Changing our lives with
Open Mike Poetry Day.
Teenagers taking off masks
Real, recognizing-
New friendships.
Word.
Curveball: The Year I Lost My Grip (Pantoum)
Curveball: The Year I lost my Grip by Jordan Sonnenblick is Pete’s story. Pete is a freshman in high school, dealing with an injury to his arm that permanently impacts his ability to play his favorite sport – baseball. While Pete deals with teachers, girls, parents, and how to tell his best buddy AJ about his baseball issue, he is also hiding a secret. His grandfather is slowly losing his independence as Alzheimer’s takes over his memory and mind. Of course, all of these painful, awkward threads through the story are written Sonnenblick-style, meaning that you feel like you have a best friend with you, keeping you safe and laughing through the painful moments.
Pantoum Poem
Grandpa
Because memories matter,
Grandpa taught me to watch-
His love of photography,
His love of life.
Grandpa taught me to watch-
He gave me everything-
His love of life,
To see and to remember.
He gave me everything-
His love of photography-
To see and to remember,
Because memories matter.
April is Poetry Month!
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.
Books with Guys as Main Characters
Inexcusable by Chris Lynch
Grades 8 and up
Kier is convinced that he loves Gigi, and that he is a good guy. Gigi thinks otherwise. As Gigi comes to terms with what happened to her, Kier faces the guy who did such an inexcusable thing.
My Rating: 4 Stars
Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson
Tyler is finally being noticed at school, and in some ways life is looking up. Unfortunately, as he catches the eye of Bethany, his secret crush, he also catches grief from her brother. Things get worse when Tyler is blamed for some illegal, and uncool activities that just may ruin everything.
My Rating: 4.5 Stars
Dope Sick by Walter Dean Myers
Grades 8 and up
Lil J has been shot, so he rushes into an abandoned building as he tries to hide from the police. While he is inside the building, he meets Kelly, a man who asks Lil J just the right questions, and may have an answer or two. Together, they talk through what happened, and the events leading up to the situation that Lil J is in. Lil J has a chance to get honest while he also decides how to get away before the police find him
My Rating: 3.5 Stars
The Get Rich Quick Club by Dan Gutman
Grades 1 through 5
Gina and her friends are determined to have a great summer. They decide to make summer better by finding a quick, easy way to make a million dollars. They form a club, with 5 members, and start working, scheming and deceiving.
My Rating: 2.5 stars
Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine
Ages 10 and up
This book, told from the viewpoint of eleven-year-old Caitlin, is amazing. Caitlin has Asperger’s syndrome, which makes functioning in the world a challenge. Mrs. Brook helps Caitlin learn important social skills, like: “Look At The Person”, using “YOUR MANNERS”, and respecting other people’s “Personal Space”. Unfortunately, Caitlin has a bigger problem. She is looking for “Closure” and a way to deal with “The Day Our Life Fell Apart.” When Caitlin refers to “The Day Our Life Fell Apart”, she is referring to the day that her older brother Devon was killed, changing life for Caitlin and her father who are both grieving.
As Caitlin tries to learn to “Deal With this difficult situation called life”, she comes across a few people who may be able to help her find “Closure” too.
My Rating: 5 stars!
The Juvie Three by Gordon Korman
Ages 12 and up
Gecko, Terence and Arjay have the opportunity to leave the juvenile detention center that they have been sentenced to so they can live in halfway house with Mr. Healy, a man who wants to work with troubled youth and make a difference. Unfortunately, one night when the boys are fighting, Mr. Healy gets hurt and is knocked unconscious. While he is hospitalized, the boys have to decide what to do. They know that if they tell, they’ll land back in the juvenile detention center, so they try to keep their freedom. They agree that one way to protect their freedom is to stay out of trouble, which is quite the undertaking for boys used to lives of crime.
My rating: 3 stars
Zen and the Art of Faking It by Jordan Sonnenblick
Ages 10 and up
When San Lee moves to yet another school, he sees an opportunity to reinvent himself. San is good at moving, and good at taking on a persona for wherever he is. So far, he has been a skater, a Bible-thumper, a rich preppy kid, and a macho pretend-jock. This time, as an eighth-grader in Pennsylvania, he lets the persona come to him.
As San becomes the Zen Master of his school, he struggles with who he really is: an Asian kid who was adopted by white, American parents, with a father who is in prison, and a guy with feelings for a girl that might see through his lies.
My rating: 4.5 stars
Some Historical Fiction
One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
Ages 10 and up
Delphine, and her younger sisters Vonetta and Fern, visit their estranged mother in Oakland, California during the summer of ’68. When Delphine and her sisters go to a summer camp, run by the Black Panther Party, their eyes are opened to new ways of thinking about things: some scary, some reasonable. Through all of this, Delphine and her sisters also struggle to come to terms with their mother, her nonchalance about their existence, and who they are regardless.
My Rating: 4 stars
Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko
Ages 10 and up
Moose and his family have just moved to Alcatraz Island, where his dad will be working as a guard. Set in the 1930s, Moose is worried about the prisoners on the island, including Al Capone. Moose meets Piper, the outgoing, overbearing, and very cute daughter of the warden. Piper is very talented at breaking the rules, while she has her dad convinced that she is blameless. Moose has to deal with Piper, his own sister who is autistic, a dad who is so busy keeping the Island safe that he isn’t around to keep his own family safe.
My Rating: 5 stars
The Read-e-ologist 