A cheerful way to make a connection with the natural world.
Twenty lighthearted poems imagine the goings-on at insect school.
From arrival to the end of the day, through lessons, lunch, and recess, Harrison places anthropomorphic, familiar insects in a school environment. Graceful and humorous, these short poems allude to typical behaviors. The termites eat everything; the crickets learn to hide and annoy; the school nurse, a mosquito, always wants to draw blood; and the stink bugs…stink. With deftly constructed rhyme and rhythm patterns, lively language, and alliteration, his poems have immediate appeal. They’re splendidly matched by whimsical cartoons that reward a second look. Bayless uses watercolor, ink, colored pencil, and digital media to portray the insect scholars and their teachers. These busy “bugs,” partially clothed in pants or skirts or shirts and sometimes shoes, are engaged in appropriate activities. A horsefly sadly contemplates the D- minus in Social Skills on his report card. A ladybug attempts to count a page filled with tiny aphids. A squad of insect cheerleaders acrobatically chants the school motto: “NEVER EAT A FRIEND AT SCHOOL!” And the grasshoppers complain: “It’s fine to eat / the farmer’s crop / but eating US / has got to stop!!” This entertaining new collection would pair nicely with the author’s Bugs: Poems about Creeping Things, illustrated by Rob Shepperson (2007), for classroom use.
A cheerful way to make a connection with the natural world. (Picture book/poetry. 5-10)Pub Date: March 20, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-62979-204-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Wordsong/Boyds Mills
Review Posted Online: Nov. 26, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
Here’s hoping this will inspire many children to joyfully engage in writing.
Both technique and imaginative impulse can be found in this useful selection of poems about the literary art.
Starting with the essentials of the English language, the letters of “Our Alphabet,” the collection moves through 21 other poems of different types, meters, and rhyme schemes. This anthology has clear classroom applications, but it will also be enjoyed by individual readers who can pore carefully over playful illustrations filled with diverse children, butterflies, flowers, books, and pieces of writing. Tackling various parts of the writing process, from “How To Begin” through “Revision Is” to “Final Edit,” the poems also touch on some reasons for writing, like “Thank You Notes” and “Writing About Reading.” Some of the poems are funny, as in the quirky, four-line “If I Were an Octopus”: “I’d grab eight pencils. / All identical. / I’d fill eight notebooks. / One per tentacle.” An amusing undersea scene dominated by a smiling, orangy octopus fills this double-page spread. Some of the poems are more focused (and less lyrical) than others, such as “Final Edit” with its ending stanzas: “I check once more to guarantee / all is flawless as can be. / Careless errors will discredit / my hard work. / That’s why I edit. / But I don’t like it. / There I said it.” At least the poet tries for a little humor in those final lines.
Here’s hoping this will inspire many children to joyfully engage in writing. (Picture book/poetry. 7-10)Pub Date: March 17, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-68437-362-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Wordsong/Boyds Mills
Review Posted Online: Dec. 17, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2020
Every educator knows the bathroom pass is an escape route for students. While neither condemning nor condoning that...
Dakos adds another collection to the poetry shelf, this one taking its inspiration from the school bathroom.
Every educator knows the bathroom pass is an escape route for students. While neither condemning nor condoning that behavior, Dakos’ poetry explores the many reasons kids might need that release: to get away from a bully, to chat with a friend, to cry about something happening at home, to celebrate a victory or agonize over a defeat and, of course, to use the toilet. Standouts among the silly poems include "Trapped!," about a boy stuck in a stall during recess and "The Bathroom Dance," which speaks for itself. The highlights of the serious offerings focus on telling secrets ("Blabbermouth") and divorce ("Crying in the Bathroom"). Many, while outwardly funny, challenge kids to delve a little deeper: “We were in the bathroom, / the bully and I. / He punched me, / I punched him back, / and that’s when he cried!” While there is some potty humor, Dakos keeps it from getting too disgusting, and several poems focus on good bathroom hygiene. Reminiscent of Quentin Blake’s drawings, Beech’s vignettes masterfully capture the essence of each poem, and children will be able to read his characters’ facial expressions and body language like an open book.Pub Date: July 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8075-2675-0
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Whitman
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
