SEEING INTO TOMORROW by Richard Wright

As the mom of two African American boys, I am always on the hunt for books that depict my boys in positive, but ordinary ways. Definitely not as sports stars or rappers. And not even necessarily heroes like George Washington Carver or Barack Obama or Martin Luther King, Jr.  I want them to see ordinary people doing ordinary things. Maybe that's why I fell in love with SEEING INTO TOMORROW: HAIKU BY RICHARD WRIGHT with biography and illustrations by Nina Crews.

Ricard Wright is best known for his novel NATIVE SON and his autobiography, BLACK BOY. According to the biographical information in the back of SEEING INTO TOMORROW, he was born in Roxie, Mississippi, in 1908. As a young man, he moved from city to city, and finally moved to Paris in 1947 because he heard circumstances were better for African Americans there. In the final years of his life, he wrote thousands of haiku; eight hundred were published in a collection called HAIKU: THE OTHER WORLD. The haiku in SEEING INTO TOMORROW come from those. Each two-page spread contains one haiku, and  several large color photographs of an African American boy.

Maybe the thing I love most is that not only are all of the boys in the book doing ordinary things, but they are doing them outside- exploring the woods, walking dogs, and playing in a park. Exactly the kinds of things I want kids to do every day. Here are a couple that I loved (it's a teeny bit hard to do them justice without the photographs).

As day tumbles down,

The setting sun's signature

Is written in red.

A spring sky so clear

that you feel you are seeing

into tomorrow.

Reading these makes me want to find Wright's adult book. 

Kat Appel, who is writing a poem a day, is hosting Poetry Friday today. 

TWO CYBILS NOMINEES- NOVELS IN VERSE

EBB AND FLOW BY HEATHER SMITH

Eleven- year-old Jett has had a horrible year. His father was the driver in a DUI accident that killed a family of four. His mother decides to relocate for a "fresh start." Jett somehow becomes friends with the school bully, Junior, who is living through some very rough times. Together, Jett and Junior, make some poor decisions, one of which involves Jett's mentally disabled adult uncle. When the book opens, Jett is returning to his grandmother's cottage by the ocean, for a summer of reflection and healing.

ALONE TOGETHER BY SARAH J. DONOVAN

Sadie is 15, the 9th of 11 children, growing up in a barely functional Catholic family. Her father doesn't work, and her mother works two jobs to keep food on the table (barely). Most of Sadie's older siblings have left the home, and those that are left, including Sadie, are basically raising themselves. Sadie is trying to keep her head above water- going to school, working, playing volleyball, and supporting younger siblings, including Teresa, who is 14 and pregnant. This book has a little of a lot of teenage issues- identity, sexuality, romance, friendship. It's one I think lots of reluctant middle and high school readers will enjoy.

HIDDEN CITY: POEMS OF URBAN WILDLIFE by Sarah Grace Tuttle

I live in the heart of Denver. Although I live at least 30 minutes from any area I would describe as "wooded or rural," I regularly glimpse raccoons, foxes, coyotes, and of course, squirrels, and all kinds of bugs and birds, when I am out working in the yard or walking my dog.

In HIDDEN CITY: POEMS OF URBAN WILDLIFE debut poet, Sarah Grace Tuttle celebrates the wildlife of the city. In her poems, readers find all kinds of animals- including mice, skunks, sparrows, and several kinds of insects, as well as plants like mushrooms, moss, and wildflowers.

Tuttle has a dual degree in English and environmental studies, and as someone who loves a few facts with her poetry, I love the information she embedded in each poem, as well as the followup endnotes, "Fun Facts About the Wildlife in These Poems."

Readers of HIDDEN CITY learn to watch carefully for the natural wonders in their own world. I could see reading the poems and then heading out with writers' notebooks to capture the wonders that we might find. Kids could definitely use the poems as mentors for their own wildlife/nature poems.

Artist Amy Schimler-Safford is an illustrator that is new to me, but her collage artwork is perfect for the poems in HIDDEN CITY.

"Community Garden"
An empty lot has
grown over with
wild tangles of grass and aster,
bright dandelions,
wood sorrel, clover.
Now
bees and butterflies feast on nectar
ants build
snails crawl
and garden snakes sun themselves
by the graffitied wall.


"Under Cover"
On the side of a house
ladybugs
tuck under shingles
in clumps and rows,
crawl into cracks
in clusters and droves
slow
slow
slow
their heartbeats,
and snuggle in tight
for their long winter sleep.


"The Hunting Lesson"
A mother raccoon
teaches her kits:
place paws firmly and
push
push again
push again
until
CRASH!
a feast spills out of the bin.
Bagels and fish heads and broccoli
all for the taking.

I'm looking forward to sharing this book with students in my urban setting.

WON TON and CHOPSTICK- Lee Wardlaw

I'm still reviewing CYBILS nominees. Today's offering WONTON AND CHOPSTICK by Lee Wardlaw, is a sequel to WONTON, a story about a shelter cat and the boy who takes him home. Wonton and Chopstick is  broken into chapters, just like the original. In the first chapter, WONTON has become very comfortable in his routines.

The Routine

Nap, play, bathenap, eat, repeatpractice makes purr fect.

One day, he senses something different in the house. A new puppy has come home. And the adjustment is a little difficult.

The Surpriseputhimoutputhimoutputhimoutputhim-- waitI said him,  not me.  

Eventually Won-Ton and the intruder become co-conspirators.

You shouldn't rummagethrough the rubbishbut what's doneis done so…Let's eat!

And of course, ultimately they become friends.

Your secret revealed.What kind of name is Basho?I shall call you…Friend. 

Sweet, predictable, one that the little guys are sure to ask for again and again.

* I'm not sure why, but Blogspot is being difficult today and won't let me do line breaks. My apologies to Lee Wardlaw!

THE POPCORN ASTRONAUTS- Deborah Ruddell

I've spent the last two and half months as a first round poetry judge for the CYBILS award. We were charged with the task of choosing seven books from 48 terrific nominations, and The Popcorn Astronauts And Other Bite-able Rhymes by Deborah Ruddell was one of the seven finalists we selected. The book includes 21 poems about food, organized by season: spring is smoothies and guacamole, summer is, of course, watermelon, Fall is baked potatoes and brownies, and winter is popcorn, mac and cheese, and brownies. One of my fellow judges, Nancy Bo Flood, describes the book in this way:

"Delicious. Ridiculous. Funny. Engaging. Popcorn Astronauts offers a variety of “edible” poems that are as strange and crazy as the book’s title. For example, try a shake ordered to poetic specifications: “A frosty cup of moonlight, please … As mushy as a mittenful of slightly melted snow ….” If that is a little on the chilly side, then try “Dracula’s Late-Night Bite,”especially after he “flosses his fangs and he slides out the door for dessert.” Great poems to cause both laughter and interest in young readers and examples for writing one’s own delicious verse."
Nancy Bo Flood, ReaderKidz

Arrival of the Popcorn Astronauts
The daring popcorn astronauts
are brave beyond compare--
they scramble into puffy suits
and hurtle through the air.

And when they land, we say hooray
and crowd around the spot
to salt the little astronauts
and eat them while they're hot.

- Deborah Ruddell


And one of my personal favorites:

How a Poet Orders a Shake
"A frosty cup of moonlight, please"
the poet murmurs low.
As mushy as a mittenful
of slightly melted snow...

"And softer than a summer cloud
and paler than a swan
and pearlier than polar bears,"
the poet rambles on.

And let it be at least as sweet
as icing on a cake
In other words, my usual:
a small vanilla shake.
- - Deborah Ruddell

For reviews of the other six finalists, go to the CYBILS website.

Tabatha is hosting Poetry Friday this week at The Opposite of Indifference.

AN AMBUSH OF TIGERS- Betsy Rosenthal

I love books that encourage kids to develop a fascination with words. AN AMBUSH OF TIGERS is definitely one of those books. In this rhyming picture book, author Betsy Rosenthal presents collective nouns in a way that kids are sure to enjoy. Did you know that a group of tigers is called an ambush? That giraffes come in towers? Rhinos in crashes? Leopards in leaps? Sharks in shivers? Porcupines in prickles? There are thirty-three different animal groups for kids to enjoy.

Does an ambush of tigers
quietly creep
past a bed of oysters
that snores in its sleep? 

Do leaps of lizards
jump into trees
while armies of herring
march in the seas?

And when all these animals
receive an invitation
to come together
for a huge celebration 

Would you call it a mob?
A sea? A crowd?
Whatever it is
it sure is LOUD!

Back matter includes a glossary.

OVER THE HILLS AND FAR AWAY: A TREASURY OF NURSERY RHYMES- collected by Elizabeth Hammill

I almost always give books when I am invited to a baby shower. Let other people give nighties, and nose sucker outers and bath towels and bibs. This week, while reading for the CYBILS, I found a nursery rhyme collection that I am going to be giving for a long time.

150 nursery rhymes and songs- many traditional and well known. Some less so. Arranged so that versions from different countries are on facing pages, or sometimes spread over four pages.  Each two page spread, or sometimes a page, is illustrated by a different artist from the English speaking world. Some are well known- think Ashley Bryan, Eric Carle, Bob Graham, Shirley Hughes, Pat Hutchins, Jon Klassen, Jerry Pinkney, Chris Raschka. Others are emerging illustrators.

The book benefits Seven Stories, Britain's National Centre for Children's Books (which looks like someplace I would definitely like to visit if I ever get back to the United Kingdom).

A perfect gift for any baby or young child!

CHANGES BY CHARLOTTE ZOLOTOW

If she were still alive, Charlotte Zolotow would turn 100 this year. Just in case you don't know Zolotow's work, she was an editor of children's books, and worked with authors like Laura Ingalls Wilder, Maurice Sendak, and Arnold Lobel. And she was the author of more than 90 books of her own, including William's Doll, Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present, and My Grandson Lew. Zolotow actually died in 2013, in the home she had lived in for more than 55 years.

It seems only fitting, then, to honor her long legacy with a new book. CHANGES came out this year. The book includes 28 poems, arranged according to season. There is also a foreword by Zolotow's daughter, Crescent Dragonwagon.  The poems are lovely, and gentle, and cyclical, and comforting. A perfect lap book for opening a young child's ear and heart to poetry.


"Change"

This summer
still hangs
heavy and sweet
with sunlight
as it did last year

The autumn
still comes
showering cold and crimson
as it did last year.

The winter
still stings
clean and cold and white
as it did last year.

The spring
still comes
like a whisper in the dark night.

It is only I
who have changed.

(C) Charlotte Zolotow


Then a winter poem (which only seems fitting, since I actually wrote this post on Tuesday, when we had a very rare snow day in Denver).

Contrast
As I watch the snow fall
big, slow white flakes
like feathers floating down,
my hands are cold.

It's hard to remember
the summer
and soaking up the sun
feeling its warmth
seep through me
deep through me
down to these frozen toes.

(C) Charlotte Zolotow, 2015

Head over to Diane Mayr's Random Noodling for more poetry offerings.

IN THE SEA- David Elliott, illustrated by Holly Meade

For those, like me, who like a little science with their poetry, and gorgeous language besides, here is a  perfect new poetry book for you. IN THE SEA, by David Elliott and Holly Meade, is a collection of  25 poems about sea creatures- seahorses, coral, blue whales, octopus, sharks, puffer fish, moray eel, mackerel, starfish, herring, sea turtles and more. The poems are short- most are between four and ten lines, but they are filled with terrific information.

"The Sea Turtle"
Swims the seven seas
for thirty years
then finds the beach
where she was born--
by magic it appears.

How can she know to come upon
that far and sandy place?
Rare instrument of nature,
fair compass in a carapace?

 And in case you didn't notice, Elliott also fills his poems with gorgeous, gorgeous words for kids to wrap their mouths and brains around. Take a look at this poem…

"The Moray Eel"
Ferocious. Cunning.
Belligerent. Brave.
A sword without its sheath
a dragon in its cave.

Other words you will find in these poems include apparition, briny, jester, cunning, and belligerent. 

And Holly Meade's woodcut print/watercolor (I think?) illustrations are absolutely gorgeous-- beautiful combinations of tans and aquas and blues and greens and golds, and sweeping lines that capture the movement of the sea perfectly.  I want to share this book with the art teacher at my school, because I think she would love using it with kids.

I could see lots of uses for this book. I might just put it in a poetry basket, or an ocean basket, for kids to enjoy. I might use the poems as mentor texts in a multi-genre unit- I could see studying Elliott's work, then writing our own poems embedding facts about animals we were studying (for people who are interested in doing that, Elliott has also written two companion volumes- ON THE FARM and IN THE WILD). I might have kids study Meade's illustrations, then try something similar. I might also use this book when I was talking with writers about word choice.

For teachers who like a little science with their poetry, this book is a perfect choice!

I'VE LOST MY HIPPOPOTAMUS- Jack Prelutsky

There are some authors that kids are always just plain glad to see. And Jack Prelutsky is definitely  one of those authors. The newest (or at least I think it's newest) book from this very prolific poet, is classic Prelutsky. There is a lot of silliness…

 "THANKSGIVING MATH"
I swallowed a third of the turkey,
A tenth of the carrots and peas,
A quarter of half the potatoes
A fifth of a ninth of the cheese,
A sixth of an eighth of the pudding
A seventh of all of the cake,
And so I am now doubled over,
With triple a whole bellyache. 

 There is a lot of word play…

"MY SNAKE CAN DO ARITHMETIC"
My snake can do arithmetic
My snake is far from dumb
My snake can take two numbers,
And come up with a sum. 

She can't subtract, which makes her sad,
And two things make her sadder…
She can't divide or multiply--
My snake is just an adder. 

Prelutsky employs a variety of formats- everything from free verse to haiku to limericks, to concrete poetry. And, as always, he's a master at tools like repetition and alliteration. I taught both of those in intermediate grades this week, and am wishing now that I had started each day with humorous poem, then gone on to more serious examples.

I was also struck, in reading I'VE LOST MY HIPPOPOTAMUS,  by Prelutsky's use of  rich and interesting vocabulary-- talk about text complexity! Here's a sample from a random two-page spread--fortunate, discern, gem, pity, commonplace, hard-pressed, strain, manufactured, insufferable, detect, odor, sniff. And in case you think I'm making it up, here's another randomly selected two page spread--crochety, miffed, appearance, cosmetics, strategically, perfumed, festooned, bangles, inexpressible.  I'm not big on "vocabulary" lessons where teachers find the interesting/difficult words and have kids look them up in dictionaries, but I do think this book would lend itself to lots of interesting discussions about how carefully poets/authors choose words.

Prelutsky is a hall-of-famer when it comes to poetry for kids. And this is another classic!

I like a few facts with my poetry…

I love it when poetry and science collide. You know, those books that include not only poetry, but also have a few facts thrown. One of my favorite 2011 CYBILS Poetry nominees was COUSINS OF CLOUDS, a book of poems and facts about elephants. This year's CYBILS nominees also include a couple of poem/fact books.

unBEElievables, one of Douglas Florian's newest books, is classic Florian- interesting information, clever word play, and gorgeous illustrations. Each two-page spread includes a poem, a paragraph of factual information, and then a gorgeous collage-type illustration. Here's a sample:

"Bees Buzz"
All day we bees
Just buzz and buzz
That's what we duzz
And duzz and duzz.
Why are we full
Of fuzz and fuzz?
Bee-cuzz bee-cuzz
The fuzz the fuzz
Helps pollen stick
To uzz to uzz.

Then the accompanying factual paragraph:

Bees beat their wings rapidly when they fly. This causes the air around them to vibrate, and the vibration causes bees' signature buzzing sound. The fuzzy hairs on bees' bodies have an electrostatic charge, which helps attract a flower's pollen grains.

Thirteen additional poems teach readers about bees' body parts, jobs (queen, worker, drone), dances, pollination and Colony Collapse Disorder. A BEEbliography includes books and websites where readers can find additional information.

TAKE TWO: A CELEBRATION OF TWINS is another poem/fact book. Two literary powerhouses, J. Patrick Lewis (a twin) and Jane Yolen (the niece, sister-in-law and grandmother of twins), have joined forces to write 45 poems about twins. There are sections  about "Twins in the Waiting Womb," "Twinfants," "How to be One," and "Famous Twins." And each two page spread includes at least one twin fact. Did you know that the study of twins is called gemellology? Or that identical twins have the same brain wave patterns? That there were 2,038 sets of twins at the Twins' Day Festival in Twinsburg, Ohio?

"Pairs"

We are not 

The only twos:

Socks come in pairs

As well as shoes.

Eyes are double

Hands and feet

Legs are twosome,

Ears repeat

All the best things

Come in two"

You with me

And me with you.

Don Graves used to always say that poets were a lot like scientists. Both have to observe the world very, very closely. Generally, I agree with just about anything Don Graves said, but I especially agree with that. It's great to find a few other authors that agree.

JULIE ANDREWS' TREASURY FOR ALL SEASONS

To be honest, I'm generally not a big fan of celebrity authors. When I saw Julie Andrews' TREASURY FOR ALL SEASONS: POEMS AND SONGS TO CELEBRATE THE YEAR on the CYBILS list, then,  I was not expecting much. I was very pleasantly surprised. The anthology, consisting of approximately 150 poems collected by Andrews and her daughter, Emma Walton Hamilton (they even wrote a few) is terrific, one I would definitely love to own or give as a gift.

TREASURY FOR ALL SEASONS  contains a variety of poems to read throughout the year. First, there are 8-10 poems for each month of the year. Many are traditional, ranging from Longfellow and Coleridge to e.e. cummings and Robert Frost, but there are also many contemporary poets (e.g. Sandra Cisneros, Barbara Juster Esbenson, Bobbi Katz, Myra Cohn Livinston, Valerie Worth). November, for example, includes:

•  "November" by John Updike
•  "Autumn Fires" by Robert Louis Stevenson
• "The First Thanksgiving"  and "I Ate Too Much" by Jack Prelutsky
• "Father, We Thank Thee" by Ralph Waldo Emerson
• "Rhapsody" by William Stanley Braithwaite
• "Jack Frost" by Helen Bayley Davis.  

Within each month, there are poems for pretty much every holiday, all the ones you'd expect, but also others--  Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Chinese New Year,  and Grandparents Day. There are also poems for religious holidays such as  Ramadan, Purim, Rosh Hashanah, Hannukah, and Kwanzaa.

Andrews and Hamilton also include  ections for other holidays or occasions, including The Sabbath/Shabbat,  Birthdays, New Babies,  and Coming of Age/Rites of Passage. Many of the sections begin with a letter from Julie Andrews, explaining why they chose certain poems, or making personal connections. These letters would be good mentor texts if kids were trying to assemble their own poetry anthologies

I also love the layout of this book. Most poems have their own page or two-page spread, so there is plenty of "breathing room" on each page. Marjorie Priceman's illustrations are gorgeous- vibrant, joyful, bright and flowing.

Adding this to my repertoire of gift books- it would be perfect for a baby shower, or family Christmas/Hanukkah gift, or for a student teacher or mentee, who was just starting a collection of poetry books.

NEVER FORGOTTEN- Patricia McKissack, Illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon

I have been a CYBILS judge for the past four years. In 2008, I judged YA nonfiction, then moved to Elementary Nonfiction for 2009 and 2010. This year, I'm judging poetry, and to be really honest, I'm more than a little overwhelmed/intimidated. How in the world can I ever begin to capture the magnificence of books like Patricia McKissack's NEVER FORGOTTEN?

In an author's note, McKissack says that NEVER FORGOTTEN began when she wondered how African parents grieved and remembered the children who had been captured by slave traders. She turned to African history and folktales. From those roots came NEVER FORGOTTEN, the story of Dinga, a blacksmith from the Mende tribe. Dinga's wife dies in childbirth, and Dinga goes against tribal customs and decides he will raise his son, Mustafa. He calls on the four elements-- Earth, Fire, Water and Wind-- to help him raise his son. When Mustafa is twelve, he is kidnapped by slave traders. Dinga searches for his son, grieves for him, and then calls on the Elements to discover his son's fate…

I guess I will just start by saying that NEVER FORGOTTEN is magnificent in every way imaginable. McKissack tells Dinga and Mustafa's story through a series of approximately 20 poems. The poems are a cross between history and folklore, with African drum sound effects. Listen for a minute…

Water Maiden sang to the boy child

An old, old lullaby:

A baby has come.

He has come,

And happiness has come.

A boy has come.

He has come.

And laughter has come.

A son has come.

He has come,

And beauty has come.

When the child gurgled in reply,

She tickled his toes and said,

"Even now I can hear music in his voice.

Shum Da Da We Da Shum Da Da We Da."

Then, as if all of this glorious language was not enough, the book is illustrated by Caldecott winners Leo and Diane Dillon. Their woodcut illustrations are absolutely gorgeous- incredible detail, rich color, varied page design- possibly even worthy of another Caldecott consideration?

I will definitely be reading this to my fourth graders. I could also see using it in a high school or college history class. It's just about perfect…

PEACEFUL PIECES: POEMS AND QUILTS ABOUT PEACE by Anna Grossnickle Hines

If you don't know poems and quilts of Anna Grossnickle Hines, you are missing out. Her book, WINTERLIGHTS, celebrates all things luminous- Christmas lights, the Aurora Borealis and Solstice- to name a few. SEASONS: A YEAR IN POEMS AND QUILTS celebrates the seasons of the year through plants and animals.

I love Anna Grossnickle Hines' art as much as her words- she is a quilter and illustrates her poems with beautiful, beautiful quilts. I'm on a book buying moratorium, but when I saw that she had a new book, well, of course I had to have it.

PEACEFUL PIECES is a collection of 25 poems about peace. There are several poems about creating peace within ourselves. There is a poem about fighting with a sibling. There is a poem about being kind to a classmate when no one else is. There are poems about respect and about angry words. And of course, each poem is accompanied by one of Grossnickle's amazing quilts.

In the back of the book, there are short biographies of eight of the world's great peacemakers- Gandhi, Dorothy Day-- and also two young peacemakers- Samantha Smith and Mattie Stepanek. There is also a short piece about how she sought the help of other quiltmaking friends to create her illustrations.

There are so, so, many great poems that it was hard to choose just one to include in this post, but I finally did:

PEACE: A RECIPE

Open minds-- at least two.

Willing hearts-- the same.

Rinse well with compassion.

Stir in a fair amount of trust.

Season with forgiveness.

Simmer in a sauce of respect

As dash of humor brightens the flavor.

Beat served with hope.

Anna Grossnickle Hines (c) 2011

I think this book would be invaluable in talking to kids (or adults) about peace and love and kindness and respect. I can see myself reading many of these poems the first week of school, then returning to them again and again and again.

You can read more about how Anna Grossnickle Hines created the book here.

You can read about how she created one page here. If you scroll all the way to the bottom of this page, there's a book trailer of her reading some of the poems.

SUNDAY POETRY FOR THE SOUL

Today, because it's Sunday…

Or maybe because it snowed (after we had a record high yesterday)…

Or because it's the last day of spring vacation, and I have to go do schoolwork…

Or because I keep reading all of the wonderful poems everyone is writing,

and sometimes, lots of times, I write poetry too,

but right now I just don't have any poems…

Or because…

I first came across this poem on a dear friend's website. Bobbi is one of the most grounded, centered, truly spiritual people I have ever met. I loved this poem.

"Love After Love"

The time will come
when, with elation
you will greet yourself arriving
at your own door, in your own mirror
and each will smile at the other's welcome,

and say, sit here. Eat.
You will love again the stranger who was your self.

Read the rest of the poem at Poemhunter.com

BELLA AND BEAN- Rebecca Kai Dotlich

For the past few weeks, I've been writing poetry in a kindergarten class. Today will be our last day together, because I will spend the next few weeks administering the CSAP to a group of fifth graders. I've found the perfect farewell read aloud- BELLA AND BEAN by Rebecca Kai Dotlich.

I first read about BELLA AND BEAN on the Year of Reading blog two or three weeks ago. Franki said, "A book about poetry and a book about being a friend. What could be better?" I couldn't agree more!

Bella is a poet. She likes sitting in a chair, thinking of beautiful words, and writing poems. Bean, on the other hand, is a going kind of gal. She likes walking to the pond and planting snow bushes. The fact that these two good friends care about such very different things causes more than a little "friction" in their relationship. 

This would be a great read aloud for a unit on poetry. Or for teaching kids about word choice. Or when you are talking about friendship or conflict resolution. Or when you just need a great read aloud…