From a mote of dust to the Vietnam War Memorial, from a camel to a writer’s tools (pen, paper and ink), 30 short poems by nearly as many modern poets address a wide range of everyday creatures and items. Rayevsky ably captures each entry’s tone and topic by placing easily recognizable figures against broadly brushed, often semi-abstract backgrounds, and casting a muted light over each scene. As a collection, this doesn’t have enough individual identity to stand out from the crowd, but with a roster of contributors that goes from Emily Dickinson and Ogden Nash to Nikki Grimes and Dennis Lee, there should be something here to appeal to readers of nearly any preference or temperament. Possibly because the poets do speak to their subjects directly, this is billed as a companion to Dirty Laundry Pile: Poems in Different Voices (2001), illustrated by Melissa Sweet, in which objects themselves narrate—but the connection isn’t a particularly strong one. (Picture book/poetry. 7-10)
Pub Date: March 1, 2007
ISBN: 0-06-052347-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2007
Leaving behind much of the lyricism found in his previous collections, Berry (First Palm Trees, 1997, etc.) pens poems in the voices of a sister, Dreena (who has the magical name), and brother, Delroy, on their experiences in the family with a dour sister, mother (“A teacher, Mom has lots of pens/and home and school jobs”), and father, who “drives a train,/sometimes in a heavy jacket.” This father is not really poem-material: “And, sometimes, Dad brings us gifts./Sometimes, he plays our piano.” The brother, Delroy, who tenders three autobiographical poems, can’t sit still and can’t stop talking about it. There is a good declarative poem, about a strong friendship he shares with another boy. Otherwise, he is dancing like a madman (“doing body-break and body-pop”) or skateboarding under the influence of a fevered imagination (“I want one owl on each my shoulder/hooting out as I leap each river”). In her first book, Hehenberger takes a literal route, anchoring every poem in domestic scenes of family and friends; the deep colors and finely sculpted forms become set pieces for Berry’s earthbound images. (Picture book. 5-9)
Pub Date: April 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-689-80013-4
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1999
Sabuda’s interpretation of Mother Goose is a work of moving art, which necessitates that it also be treated like one. This isn’t a volume that will survive the wear and tear of many circulations; some of the paper parts have to be gently coaxed into position. However, the reward for handling with care is great; these feats of paper engineering not only illustrate nursery rhymes in three dimensions, but they also reinterpret them, e.g., “One, two,/Buckle my shoe” is reenvisioned as a woodpecker and a hen preparing for a night out. “Knock on the door” shows the earnest woodpecker tapping on the front entrance with his beak, while “Pick up sticks” shows the hen choosing her lipstick. Glorious colors and elaborate configurations of blackbirds bursting out of pies and peacocks fanning their feathers make this an exhibition of paper prowess that’s unforgettable. (Pop-up. 4-9)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-689-81192-6
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Little Simon/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1999
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