Readers who cherish All the Small Poems, and Fourteen More (1994) will welcome this posthumous gathering of 26 more, all but three previously unpublished. In free verse lines seldom longer than three or four words, Worth writes, mostly, about common things: a pencil, a panda, an old dog, blue jeans “slowly / Ripening into / A friendliness, / A homely / Familiar / skin.” Fond of metaphor she may be, but her imagery is as easy to comprehend as her simple language, her uncomplicated personal reactions, and such observations as, in the wry title poem, the fact that the peacock may be grand, but “his freckled / Brown wife / Rambles around / Him, plain, / And free.” Babbitt’s small, exactly detailed vignettes seem to float alongside these concise, child-friendly, often (seemingly) artless poems, reinforcing their gnomic elegance. (Poetry. 7-10)
Pub Date: March 19, 2002
ISBN: 0-374-35766-8
Page Count: 48
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2002
Prose poems celebrate the feats of young heroines, some of them famous, and some not as well-known. Paul (Hello Toes! Hello Feet!, 1998, etc.) recounts moments in the lives of women such as Rachel Carson, Amelia Earhart, and Wilma Rudolph; these moments don’t necessarily reflect what made them famous as much as they are pivotal events in their youth that influenced the direction of their lives. For Earhart, it was sliding down the roof of the tool shed in a home-made roller coaster: “It’s like flying!” For Rudolph, it was the struggle to learn to walk without her foot brace. Other women, such as Violet Sheehy, who rescued her family from a fire in Hinckley, Minnesota, or Harriet Hanson, a union supporter in the fabric mills of Massachusetts, are celebrated for their brave decisions made under extreme duress. Steirnagle’s sweeping paintings powerfully exude the strength of character exhibited by these young women. A commemorative book, that honors both quiet and noisy acts of heroism. (Picture book/poetry. 6-9)
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-15-201477-2
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Old MacDonald had a farm, and on his farm animals pop up, wiggle, and roll their eyeballs. This hilarious paper-engineered version of the classic song will engage readers of all ages. The illustrations are amiable cartoons, while the mechanics of the pop-ups are superb. Old MacDonald’s tractor shakes its rear tires; a row of hungry cows roll their eyes and chew their cuds with enthusiasm. Not only are the movements funny, but the pull-tabs are tough—this book was designed to handle heavy use—and will probably survive even library circulation. (Pop-up. 2-5)
Pub Date: March 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-531-30129-X
Page Count: 12
Publisher: Orchard
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1999
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