Book spine poems for National Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month! 

 Inspired by the book spine poem gallery at 100 Scope Notes, I created two of my own.  Enjoy!

If you've created any spine poems you'd like to share, feel free to leave a link. 

(April is also Jazz Appreciation Month - more on that later)



Lemonade, Won Ton, and the Book: a poetry preview

A librarian plans early.  My mind is often several months ahead, planning library programs. I recently attended Booklist's webinar, "Spring into Books: Terrific New Titles for Youth."  There were many books previewed that I look forward to seeing, but I had an eye out for poetry titles, with April's National Poetry Month bubbling in the back of my brain.

I don't have these books yet, but here are three just released or soon-to-be released poetry titles that look very promising.

Wardlaw, Lee. 2011. Won Ton: A Cat Tale Told in Haiku. Ill. by Eugene Yelchin. New York. Macmillan.

 

It's the story of a shelter cat who finds a home - written entirely in haiku. 

A Teacher's Guide is available from the publisher.

Also from Macmillan, Bob Raczka's, Lemonade: and Other Poems Squeezed from a Single Word. (Ill. by Nancy Doniger)

Just like the title says, these  poems are each created from a single word. How much fun can you have with that? Lots!

And finally, from Holiday House

I Am the Book, a collection of poems selected by Lee Bennet Hopkins and magically illustrated by Yayo.

Jane Yolen, Naomi Shihab Nye, and others are included in I Am the Book. This one's due out in March and it looked delightful.

I'm hoping that all of these arrive at my library soon! 

November picture book roundup

Some new favorite picture books - short and sweet, here we go:

Wood, Audrey and Don. 2010. Piggy Pie Po. Boston: Harcourt.

Three very short, rhyming pig stories, starring the absolutely adorable, Piggy Pie Po - each with a humorous ending.

But when he's ready for the tub, to splish and splash and rub-a-dub-dub, Piggy Pie Po wears no clothes ... only bubbles, head to toes.

 Irresistible!

Raczka, Bob. 2010. Guyku: A Year of Haiku for Boys. Ill. by Peter H. Reynolds. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Guyku (rhymes with haiku) - illustrated haiku that features boys and things that boys like to do outdoors in each season. My favorite?

Hey, Who turned off all
the crickets?  I'm not ready
for summer to end.

 Brilliant!  Teachers should be all over this one.
Wish there were one for girls (but "Galku" just wouldn't cut it)

Fox, Mem. 2010. Let's Count Goats. Ill. by Jan Thomas.  New York: Beach Lane.

Here we see an over goat.  And this one's going under.  But can we count the crossing goats, terrified of thunder?

Mem Fox, Jan Thomas, silly goats, what's not to like? Great counting book for little ones. (You don't see the word careering very often.  Interesting choice.)

Mavor, Salley. 2010. Pocketful of Posies: A Treasury of Nursery Rhymes. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Traditional nursery rhymes illustrated in "hand-sewn fabric relief collages."  Most of the rhymes are familiar - old classics including Peter, Peter Pumpkin Eater, The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe, and the like.  But a few may be so old as to be new,

I'm dusty Bill from Vinegar Hill.  Never had a bath and never will.

The depictions of the exquisitely detailed needlework are simply stunning.  Even a child who can't appreciate the work involved will know that this book is something special.

Share |