Both playful and enlightening, period.
A collection of peppy poems and clever pictures explains different forms of punctuation.
Rebecca Kai Dotlich’s “A Punctuation Tale” kicks off the proceedings with a punny description of a day full of punctuation; goodnight is “cuddled / in quotation marks.” Ensuing poems discuss the comma, the apostrophe, the dash (“A subdued dude / in tweet and text / he signals what / is coming next”), the colon, the exclamation point, and ellipses. Allan Wolf’s poem about this last is called “…” and begins, “The silent ellipsis… / replaces…words missed.” Prince Redcloud’s “Question Marks” is particularly delightful, with the question “Why?” dancing diagonally down in stair steps. The emphatic answer is a repeated “Because!” Other poems pay tribute to quotation marks, the hyphen, and the period. Michele Kruger explains “The Purpose of Parentheses”: “inside a pair / ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) / of slender curves / we’ll hold your few / inserted words.” The final poem is editor Hopkins’ own, “Lines Written for You to Think About” (inspired by Carl Sandburg), urging young readers to write their own verses employing (what else?) punctuation. The 12 poets included work with a variety of devices and styles for an always-fresh feel. Bloch’s illustrations are delightfully surprising, both illustrating each poem’s key points and playfully riffing on the punctuation itself.
Both playful and enlightening, period. (Picture book/poetry. 5-8)Pub Date: Aug. 7, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-59078-994-0
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Wordsong/Boyds Mills
Review Posted Online: May 27, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2018
This posthumously published bilingual collection will be welcomed by Alarcón’s many admirers.
Set within a loose mythological framework, each poem is partnered with a day of the week, playing with its etymology in both Spanish and English.
Alarcón juxtaposes this classical imagery with a child’s limitless perspective of place. “Thursday / this day is for Jupiter / the largest planet of all / and god of thunder Thor— / like Jupiter and Thor / I feel big and mighty / on Thursday.” Daily ritual and mundane activities take on the patina of legend as time molds the character of what a family is and what it becomes. Equating the distinct characteristics of each day with the uniqueness of each family member, the poems embrace the strength of individuality while recognizing the power of the whole. “I begin to see / every day as part / of one big family // where every family / member is unique / so worthy and special.” And just as straightforward as Alarcón’s uncomplicated language and style are Gonzalez’s bold, geometric illustrations rendered in watercolor, gouache, and acrylic markers. From Wednesday’s Talavera-inspired rabbit to Saturday’s Huichol-like design, the colorful double-page–spread layouts complement the poems’ simplicity. Recalling the warmth of family gatherings on the sun’s day and the joy of unstructured play on Saturn’s day, each tribute resonates with nostalgia for a time when personal interactions were done face to face.
This posthumously published bilingual collection will be welcomed by Alarcón’s many admirers. (illustrator’s note, introduction) (Picture book/poetry. 5-8)Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-89239-275-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Children's Book Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A fine synthesis of poetry and science.
Twelve poems present a variety of animal homes and mate-attracting constructions.
Arachnids (trapdoor spider, garden spider), birds (red ovenbird, white stork), fish (stickleback, pufferfish), insects (termite, paper wasp), mammals (star-nosed mole, beaver, prairie dog), and a reptile (the king cobra) are each introduced by way of a double-page spread and a simple two-to-eight stanza poem. In four sections—building underground, on land, in the water, and in the air—animals are shown building webs, nests, food traps, and tunneled homes, along with their mates, eggs, or young. Laroche’s layered, cut-paper illustrations are clear and intriguingly detailed, handsomely supporting the informational content of each poem. Rich colors and varied textures allow this 3-D original artwork to work well in two dimensions. Harrison’s poems employ varied voices, rhythms, and formats; all are memorable and easy to understand. Some are humorous: a busy stickleback male appeals to a potential mother of his family: “The best nest / that’s ever been! / Please, / Ms. Stickleback, / swim in.” Backmatter gives each animal an explanatory paragraph and, for several, a suggestion of books for further exploration. The author’s and illustrator’s own sources are not indicated. A bonus poem and terrific illustration on the last page describe “A different kind of builder,” sun coral, which creates coral reefs by congregating together.
A fine synthesis of poetry and science. (Informational picture book/poetry. 5-8)Pub Date: Jan. 16, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-58089-748-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Charlesbridge
Review Posted Online: Nov. 12, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2017
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