LS5663 - Module 2 - NCTE Poet Award - Book Review

Book cover image not available.


Livingston, Myra Cohn. 1988. There was a place and other poems. New York: Margaret K. McElderry Books. No illustrations included in the book. ISBN 9780689504648.


This is a very powerful set of poems for and about children dealing with all kinds of problems that life throws at them, such as divorce, step-parents, parents with new boyfriends or girlfriends, etc. The poems allow readers to understand and relate to the frustration, anguish, pain, and confusion that are part of these issues for a child.


I think I especially liked this book of poetry because I could see myself in many of them as a child of divorce. Also being a parent and a teacher, I have often seen children and teens deal with the hardships of life in a variety of ways. Reading the poems in this book doesn't make things better, but it allows one to see that they are not alone and that others have suffered similarly. Kids long for a "normal" family, however that can be defined. That is what I felt in Myra Cohn Livingston's poetry, a since of longing. It make you sad, and mad, and glad, sometimes all at the same time.


This is an older book that appears to be out of print, but it is worth finding and placing in a school library. Children need to be exposed to a type of poetry that is fairly simple to understand and allows one to feel emotion on many levels.


There is a lot of rhyming in her poetry, which children will find familiar, and many of the poems are short and simple. She also uses simple imagery, easily allowing the reader to see the picture in their mind's eye. The parent leaving, the mother screaming, the new girlfriend laughing. I was amazed at how vivid it felt when I read.


One poem in the book is:

Father


I look for you on every street,
wondering if we'll ever meet.


In every crowd I try to see
your face. I think you'd know it's me.


I watch our corner where the bus
stops, hoping you'll come back to us.


Mom says I'd better just forget
About you. but I haven't, yet.


Wow. I just feel the hardache for a child that has to experience something like this. It is such a powerful image in such few words.

I really struggled in trying to come up with a good sponge or poetry break activity for this. It feels so personal and experiences like this are private and wouldn't feel right being tossed back and forth in a group. This may be a book that I would share individually with a child that I knew was having a hard time. Many times children want to talk to a teacher and this may be a good opening for that conversation.

This is another great example of how there are so many types of poetry out there to enjoy in so many different ways. That is a good piece of knowledge for a child to know. Some poetry is there to help deal with hardships and struggles.

LS5663 - Module 2 - Florian Poetry - Book Review

Florian, Douglas. 1994. Beast feast. San Diego: Harcourt Brace & Compnay. Mr. Florian provided the poems and the paintings. ISBN 9780152951788.

This book is full of delightful animals that children are mostly aware of. Mr. Florian has a particular talent for teaching us about these animals in a fun manner. Most of the poems are very short, only 2-3 lines, but in just a few words he is able to capture the essence of the creature. The artwork is engaging and colorful and fits very well with the poem.

In most of the poems, there is a rhythmic and rhyming pattern that is easy to hear and feel, making the poems very easy to read, and quite memorable. Children could easily walk away from this book chanting the rhyming information on an animal depicted here.

As an adult reading these poems for the first time, I was impressed on how much information about the animals is included and how accurate it is. (I was amazed that it fits into poetry form.) Many of the science details I already knew, but I loved how cleverly he was teaching it. Kids will hardly realize that they are learning "science" while reading this book.

I have many favorites from this book, but I picked:

THE FIREFLY

On August nights

The firefly lights

Blink

ON and OFF

Amongst the trees

But have no need

For batteries.

After reading a poem from this book to elementary children, a great sponge activity would be to focus on the animal mentioned in the poem and follow it up with real pictures of that animal, further showing some of the details mentioned in the poem. There are also many zoos and aquariums that have webcams in various animal cages and tanks, and children would enjoy following the daily activities of the animal mentioned in their poem, such as a whale, barracuda, anteater, boa, rhea, armadillo, sloth, camel, bat, kangaroo, kiwi, etc.

This is a great book that would complement any library.

LS5663 - Module 2 - Multicultural Poetry

Swann, Brian. 1998. Touching the distance. San Diego: Browndeer Press. Illustrations by Maria Rendon. ISBN 9780152008048.

The pictures in this 29 pg. children's poetry book are really interesting and amazing, based on mixed-media constructions!

There is one riddle on a page, with the facing page showing an illustration of that riddle. The illustrator very cleverly matches the short little Native American riddles, helping the reader to guess the answer. Some were easy to figure out, and on others, I really had to ponder how the picture was reflecting the meaning of the riddle.

At first, the Native American riddles seemed to be very simple, but after rereading the book several times, you start to realize the creativity and brilliance behind each one. The riddles don't rhyme, or have a rhythm or beat that you can feel in the words. Mr. Swann seems to rely more on figurative language of methaphor, simile, and imagery. I even tried imagining a picture in my own mind, based on the words only, without looking at the illustrations. This was a great exercise, because it then made me look even more intently at the pictures to see if they included some other ideas that popped into my head, based on the words. I started appreciating the words and pictures even more!

Mr. Swann has devised these riddles from various Native American cultures, such as Aztec, Mayan, Amizgo, Omaha, etc. I feel like the illustrator kept these origins in mind as the pictures were created. They have a Native American "feel" to them.

The Native American poetry in this book does have the potential to evoke sensory images. Children will find this book appealing because the words are simple, but effective. Matched with the illustrations, kids will be able to guess the riddles and enjoy the beautiful, and colorful, artwork.

One of my favorites in the book is:

There is that person--if you eat his mouth

he'll eat yours.

The accompanying illustration is in reds and yellows, with peppers showing on each side, and seeds in the middle. The very center of the picture is a mouth. By looking at the picture, you really do start to "see" the heat in the illustration, and the peppers, seeds, and mouth are the clues.

The answer to the riddle is "chili pepper."

After reading this riddle and solving it, kids will love talking about their experiences with hot foods!

This is a great book to share with elementary children. As an extension of reading and discussing this book, it would be interesting to put up the "words only" to a couple of these riddles, and to let the children draw or create their own illustration. A variety of art supplies would be provided, allowing for creativity. This could then be incorporated into a bulletin board display of this book and the poet, Brian Swann.

This is another wonderful example for children, showing them a new and different style of poetry. Not everything has to rhyme, but this is a type that is fun and engaging, and easy to imagine!

LS5663 - Module 1 - African American Poetry - Book Review

Smith, Hope Anita. 2008. Keeping the night watch. New York: Henry Holt and Company. Illustrations by E.B. Lewis. ISBN 9780805072020.

This is an extremely powerful book of narrative poetry. Each poem gives a further detail of the story, but they all fit together to deliver an incredible punch of emotion.

This is the story of a 13-year old African American boy who struggles with a father who left the family temporarily, and has now returned. The entire family has very strong emotions of anger, hope, fear, and abandonment. The narrative poetry is organized by seasons of the year, starting with fall. Not only does C.J. have family issues to deal with, but life goes on with school, friends, and a girlfriend.

This book is written in a free style, and the poems focus on lots of emotions, from incredibly sad to laugh out loud. The words of the poems are so carefully chosen that in just a few short words, a beautiful story is told that is easily understandable by kids and adults. Almost everyone has had to struggle with some issue discussed in this book, and it is easy to make connections.

The poet uses poetic elements of sound, figuarative language, sensory imagery, and emotional impact to create the desired effect. I believe that this story will appeal to a variety of middle and high school readers, girls and boys, if suggested and encouraged in a booktalk.

One of the lighter moments in this book is a poem called "Tongue-Tied"

One digit

dialing

seven digits.

That's all it takes to

make my voice

reach across the miles.

The receiver is my fortress.

Behind it, I can say anything.

My words walk with a sure step.

They are cocky,

strut across the telephone lines,

and never look down.

Until Maya picks up.

Then the first word stops,

abruptly,

getting caught in my throat.

And every word that comes after

plows into the one in front of it.

Fifty-two-word pile up.

Right smack dab

in the middle of

our conversation.

I love the mental image that I get when I read that poem. I have been there and so have many other people. It is just one of those rites of passage in having a boy-girl relationship. It is horrible and laughable all at the same time. Teens will relate to this poem and it will make for a great discussion, and as a way to introduce this poetry book. Kids will be able to immediately see that this book is fun and serious, and that is what life is all about. Everyone has problems, and sometimes we deal with them in a good way, and sometimes we try to avoid dealing with them at all. This would also be a good time to show other novels with similar stories, with short booktalks as well. Students usually like hearing about additional titles carrying a common theme.

LS5663 - Module 1 - School Poetry - Book Review

Wayland, April Halprin. 2002. Girl coming in for a landing. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. Illustrated by Elaine Clayton. ISBN 9780375901584.

This is a story in poetry form about a school year in the life of a high school girl. This gem of a book turned into a delightful surprise for me.

The poetry is written in a free form, narrative style, some poems are very short and others longer. The illustrations provide an interesting and entertaining feel to the book. Since reading it, I have shown it to several high school girls and discussed the various topics that are addressed in it with them in small groups. They seem to be intrigued that a poetry book is telling a really good story about this young girl. They seem to be unfamiliar with this type of book. They said that the only poetry they read is what is in their textbooks, and they would never check out a book like that. It is true, that in our high school library, you can't always judge a book by its cover. This book has been on the shelf for a few years, but has rarely been checked out.

The poetry is rich in multiple meanings, but is simple enough to enjoy at face value. You really learn, remember, and sympathize with her over what it is like to be a high school girl. There are poems about peer pressure, first love, first kisses, hard classes and homework, family relationships, school dances, music lessons, friendships, and the ever crucial clothing choices.

The poet, April Halprin Wayland, states in the afterward, that this book is taken from her personal journals. She describes how she writes poetry and the kind of instruction that she was given from her teachers. She also tells that when she submitted her first poem for publication, she was rejected, and that she didn't submit anything else for fifteen years. She strongly recommends to young poets to learn from her mistakes, and to keep writing and writing about everything, and then try to publish if you want. Don't stop at a rejection, just keep revising and reworking. She gives lots of advice to young poets, along with a list of poetry websites listed on her personal website.

One of my favorite poems is pg. 77, "Driving That Dog Crazy"

When Mr. C teaches science, he tells us stories.

When he was a boy on his way to school, he'd tease a big, mean dog

by dragging a stick against her fence.

One day, dragging that stick tic-tic-tic,

driving that dog to a barking frenzy, he came to the gate

that was always closed but this day it stood

WIDE

OPEN.

Today Mr. C teaches us about

adrenaline.

I like this poem because it tells a story, reflecting the "school year" theme to the book, but there is also humor and creativeness in the poetry. Kids will be able to understand and relate to this short, but powerful episode in the life of a student. It is familiar and interesting, and stimulates discussion and thoughts easily.

I would love to use this as a book club book, with a group of girls. It would provide very stimulating conversation, as they either agreed or disagreed with some of the main character's thoughts and actions. As an extension to this, the girls could create a short (30 sec./free) Animoto book trailer, showing their thoughts or impressions of this poetry book. This would also help to stimulate further interest with other students.

LS 5663 - Module 1 - Hopkins Collection - Book Review

Hopkins, Lee Bennett. 2009. City I love. New York: Abrams Books for Young Readers. Illustrated by Marcellus Hall. ISBN 9780810983274.

This is a delightful and fun little book of poetry based on interesting sites and scenarios of New York City. Many of the poems have a rhyming and rhythm as you read them aloud. There are lots of short lines, white spaces, and colorful illustrations, depicting various common city activities. There are fun scenes, like playing in a fire hydrant's water, and imagining how building a skyscraper is similar to performing high above a 3-ring circus.

The reality of living in a big city is also presented in a poem showing that on rainy days, taxi cabs never stop, and on subways, there are so many people that you will never, ever know.

There is poetry here showing the noise, music, heat, weather, and lights of New York. This is a great book to share with children. The words are carefully chosen to provide lots of sensory imagery through the sight, hearing, tasting, and touching of things people relate to a big city.

I especially loved and understood the poem, "Mother's Plea"

Silence sirens.

Hush all horns.

Quiet rumbling

traffic roars.

Please

city

have

some

pity.

Promise me

not

one

more

beep?

My newborn

pigeons

need

their

sleep.

Just like the mother bird, here, I once had the experience of silently praying for silence as a freight train loudly roared through my town, just as I was trying to get a very cranky baby to sleep. I have lived in a big city area before, and I understand the constant noise. On my first trip to New York City, I was awakened multiple times by trash trucks, police sirens, car horns, and voices calling into the night. Each of the poems in this book are easily connected to real city life. They are fun, but realistic. City children will easily be able to understand them. Children from more rural communities may need some further explanations. It would be fun to show short video clips from TV programs or movies of lots of city scenarios, like skyscrapers, streets full of lights, bridges full of congested cars, constant city noise, etc. ,to compare and contrast this book to that. Children will enjoy describing their own experiences and thoughts on city life in a short discussion.