TICKLE A PICKLE

by Ann Turner ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 1986

A collection of 19 short, lively poems, most of them nonsensical. ""Tickle a pickle,/greet a beet,/say 'eek!' to a leek. . ."" is pure wordplay, and readers must stretch the imagination to make sense where there is none. ""Spaghetti for One Thousand"" includes a recipe that calls for a half a lake of water and an empty truck for a pot, and the artist has spread mounds of spaghetti piled as high as rooftops. ""Jumping Rope Rhyme"" has a catchy rhythm that children will enjoy: ""Marmalade pajamas,/peanut butter hats,/eat our clothes, munch our clothes,/washing's just for cats. . ."" In another, ""Elsie Perrelli went to the beach/with a pail and a digging stick./Her brother brought a peach. . . ."" and from there, the poem becomes cumulative. The relatives in ""Visiting"" sit around and complain of ""green mold,/on the new bathroom walls,/and all the things I do wrong. . ./they're as tired as tired old toes!"" And in ""Making Soup,"" children make toilet soup with Dad's shoes, talcum powder, and oil, then they stir it with a mop. The last poem in the book, ""Paperweight,"" is similar to a haiku, describing a simple scene inside a paperweight. The images and rhythms are energetic and unusual, and the sheer nonsensical and offbeat aspects will delight some readers.

Pub Date: March 1, 1986

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Macmillan

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1986

Categories: CHILDREN'S