YA Pick: Long Way Down

Long Way Down
by Jason Reynolds
Caitlyn Dlouhy Books/Atheneum Books for Young Readers
2017
320 pages
ISBN: 9781481438254

Gripping and mesmerizing, Long Way Down will INVOLVE readers. Will (William) Holloman recounts the night of his brother's murder and how he will exact revenge on the killer because that's how his neighborhood and his life works. Everyone in his neighborhood knows the rules.

Will knows who shot his brother and knows his brother has a gun. Will grabs that gun and decides to take matters into his own hands. He steps into the elevator to go down to the street. On each floor, Will is met by someone from his past. Each person is along for the ride and each person has been affected by gun violence. Will must listen to each one's powerful story and decide what it means for him.

Told in verse, this is one story that will tug at hearts and make heads hurt. The poetry is sometimes written as a "concrete" poem where the poem is placed on the page to create the effect of an earthquake or one word on a white page. Shawn. Will's dead brother's name. Or one word repeated in the shape of a question mark. The word "right?" These pages are the strongest and most beautiful causing the reader to take a moment to think and admire the art of true poetry and storytelling.

Cover art is thoughtful and effective as the reflection of a boy is shown on the elevator door along with the buttons for each floor.The reader is left wondering what path Will will take, and maybe that's the point of the character's name: Will.

Jason Reynolds is writing some of the most powerful books on the market--the books that must be talked about and it's refreshing. For those kids who like Reynolds, felt they didn't see characters like themselves in books, he is writing their stories. Long Way Down will be a strong contender in prize categories for next year. I expect it to take top state honors and likely be a National Book Award Finalist.

Highly, highly recommended for grade 9 and up.  A must have for all collections. I would place copies in poetry and also in YA Fiction to insure it is read by all its fans.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the ARC from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

TASL Talks: Legislative and Advocacy for YOU: National Poem in Your Pocket Day - April 27, 2017

This is a nice article and mention of our upcoming event for National Poem in Your Pocket Day:

TASL Talks: Legislative and Advocacy for YOU: National Poem in Your Pocket Day - April 27, 2017: by Pamela Thompson, LMS,  Col. John O. Ensor Middle School, Socorro ISD (El Paso) ;  @PThompson_EMS  ;  http://booksbypamelathompson.blogsp...

Picture Book Pick: Watersong

Watersong
by Tim McCanna
Illustrated by Richard Smythe
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
2017
32 pages
ISBN:9781481468817


Watersong is a brilliant work of art! They symphony of  watercolors capture the power of a rain storm and a young fox as he wanders his forest home. He watches the storm listening  to the raindrops and the wind. He sees the changes that the rain brings.

Tim McCanna's use of onomatapoeia will excite young readers to follow along and make the sounds on each page. This is book that needs to be read ALOUD over and OVER again. In fact, children will demand it to be read out loud.

Readers will love reading, "Drip, drop, plip, plop, pitter, patter, pat," and the sounds throughout the storm. After the storm, the young fox observes a rainbow before coming home to his mother and family. Facts about foxes and ecosystems are included on the last page.

Kirkus called this book "Beautiful," and no one will disagree.  In fact, Watersong is an early contender for the Caldecott Award.

This book is a must for language arts and poetry. Art classes will be dazzled by the beauty of the illustrations. Young readers will learn a few facts about ecosystems and the water cycle.

Highly, highly recommended for all young readers and all library collections.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Fantasy Middle Grade Book Giveaway! The Girl Who Drank the Moon

 

The Girl Who Drank the Moon

by Kelly Barnhill

Algonquin Young Readers

2016

 

Simply magnificent!

 

I have TWO FREE copies of this exciting middle grade stand alone title. Kelly Barnhill has accomplished sheer magic with The Girl Who Drank the Moon. I feel it is the best fantasy since Harry Potter! Can anyone say Texas Bluebonnet? This is THE book everyone will be talking about. Magical, poignant, sweet, and soaring, the prose sings off the pages like poetry! scroll down to see my review of this title.

For a chance to win, simply post a comment to the blog. Please include your first name, email, city and state. Deadline for posts is noon MST on Thursday, September 8. Winners are chosen randomly by Randomizer. Please check your email the afternoon of September 8. Winners have 24 hours to respond to my email. Books will ship from New York.

What are you waiting for! Start posting and good luck! Pamela

Booked
by Kwame Alexander
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
2016
314 pages
ISBN: 9780544570986


Following his Newbery Medal winning book  The Crossover, Kwame Alexander returns to the world of sports--this time soccer--where protagonist teen sports star Nick Hall  loves soccer, daydreams in school, and thinks about having a girlfriend. Everything turns upside down  for Nick when his parents tell him they are getting a divorce. Worse still, Nick's mother is taking a job in another city, leaving him alone with his father. Nick's dad pushes him to study and learn new words, saying that he will have to cram for college in order to make something of himself. Nick has other ideas. He hates all this word study and he hates that his dad is always carping on him.

Nick is going to have to make some grown up decisions. If he wants to continue to compete in soccer, his father insists that Nick read and  study. Lucky for Nick he has a best friend who shares his enthusiasm for soccer.

One thing I loved about Booked is the compassionate and COOL librarian who leads Nick to great reads and gives him advice. Kwame Alexander gives a  shout out to YA title Rhyme Schemer, when the Mac (Nick's librarian) gives Nick one last book before he tells him goodbye. Mac won't be returning to Nick's school the following year as he is dating fellow teacher Ms. Hardwick and transferring  to a new school. I loved the relationship between a teen sports fan and his ex-rapper librarian.

I love the clever placement of words on the soccer ball on the front cover and the larger ball on the back cover.

Recommended for sports fans and fans of books in free verse. Grade 6-up.


FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Memoir Pick: Dimestore: A Writer's Life

Dimestore: A Writer's Life
by Lee Smith
Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
2016
200 pages
ISBN: 9781616205027


Lee Smith's collection of personal essays embeds her as  the voice of Appalachia. Her life story reads like a country song of religion, love, life, birth, death, pain, suffering, and joy. She grew up the only child of a hard working shopkeeper and his wife. Smith's town was full of kin: cousins, uncles, aunts, and twice removed more distant cousins. Everybody who wasn't related to each other at least knew each other. There were no secrets in town...at least no long kept secrets. Church was the center of their lives: revivals, services, church suppers, prayer meetings, funerals, and baptisms.

Children ran though the hills, swam in the river, caught fish in the stream, played up and down in  all the hollers, and came home with a hand full of wildflowers or a jar of lightning bugs. Smith conjures up the magic and wisdom of a time and  a place so distant that most of us can't recall. Folks went to church on Sunday or faced the rest of the town's scorn. People stood at attention for the pledge and celebrated being American and free.

Mothers cooked three meals a day, kids ate a lunch packed in a brown paper bag, fathers sometimes sat down to dinner late, but they always had their dinner at the table. Main street consisted of the dimestore, the post office, a movie theatre, a fire house and not much else. Some topics were never talked about. Mental illnesses were called by gentler terms, "a bout," "an episode," "kindly nervous."  When someone died, the whole town took notice and brought dishes of food. Think "Mayberry RFD" with Loretta Lynn thrown in. The town of Grundy doesn't exist anymore having been flooded by the Army Corps of Engineers, but Lee Smith's love letter to a bygone town and time live on as an endearing place of love and family.

Smith pays tribute to writing and the love of reading. She includes passages of fiction and poetry written by some of her adult students. She celebrates the life and poetry of Lou Crabtree and spoke at her funeral. Lou was an elderly lady when Smith met her at a writing workshop she was teaching. Lou had suitcases full of poems and fiction and she wrote to please herself never once thinking of publishing. She wrote to soothe herself, to calm herself, to see something on the page that made her happy. That is what writing should be! Later, Smith includes a quote from Anne Tyler who said, "I write because I want more than one life." Not to get rich, not to be famous, not to travel or to be on television. Writing for the people in Smith's essays is the essence of their being.

Thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining, this short read (200 pages) is satisfying for the soul. Smith presents a simpler way of life in the glowing halo of wistful nostalgia, but it's beautiful and ethereal.

Highly recommended for adult and mature readers and all book clubs. Anyone who loves small town America, the South, and Appalachia will love this book.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Book In Verse Pick: Enchanted Air: Two Cultures, Two Wings (A Memoir)

Enchanted Air: Two Cultures, Two Wings (A Memoir)
by Margarita Engle
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
2015
189 pages
ISBN: 9781481435222


Enchanted, indeed! Readers will experience the sights and sounds of Cuba through Margarita Engle's triumphant YA book. Engle captivates and transcends decades and distance. Remembering back to her youth spent in Cuba before the Cold War, Engle describes an enchanted  island of sun, sea, horses, farms, fragrant flowers, bright colors, music and tropical fruit. The lime picked by her grandmother is the most fragrant lovely thing young Margarita has ever tasted.

When her family moves to smoggy Los Angeles, she is forced into a school where she's an outsider. As she looks at the other students, she realizes that she will never fit in. The girl longs for her other home, her island home. She misses her Abuelita and the enchanted air of Cuba.


April 1961 brings the Bay of Pigs, a failed U.S. attempt to control Cuba and Margarita is looked upon as the enemy by classmates. She is afraid that she may have to go to a war camp like Japanese Americans during World War II. The girl retreats into books where she can be free. 1962 is the beginning of the Cold War and American school children are taught to hide under their desks for nuclear drills. Grown ups whisper and people are visibly shaken. America is afraid of Cuba and the Soviet Union. America holds its breath as the President continues talks with Khrushchev. America closes its doors to Cuba.

Margarita's family may never see their relatives again.  Engle writes in the author's note, "While I was writing Enchanted Air, my hope was that normalization would begin before it went to press. That prayer has been answered....one of the closest neighbors of the United States is just beginning to be accessible to other American citizens."

Young Margarita lives for books and poetry, spending much of her time visiting the library. She writes, "Books become my refuge./Reading keeps me hopeful." How many readers  have escaped through books? The written word is powerful indeed, connecting a lonely child with a world outside her four walls and a country that does not welcome her. The "two wings" are the two countries: America and Cuba, her two lives so different yet both a part of her.

Readers will engage with the verse structure of the book. Easy and accessible to readers, even reluctant ones, Enchanted Air is a great addition to any multi-cultural studies collection or classroom.
Engle describes the historical incidents of the Cuban missile crisis and the Bay of Pigs from a child's point of view. It is powerful and poignant.

Highly, highly recommended grade 6-up. This is one book that has many teaching opportunities: history, sociology, English, poetry, and teach it for the love of literature!

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Phonics Help Pick: Frog on a Log?

Frog on a Log?
by Kes Gray
Illustrations by Jim Field
Scholastic Press
2015
32 pages
ISBN: 9780545687911

(ebook also available)

* Review, Kirkus Reviews:

"The clear, guffaw-inducing illustrations and repetition and rhyme give all the support (new readers) need for success. Mo Willems fans will find this a perfect challenge, and storytime will never be the same. Impossible to resist." --Kirkus Reviews 

A friendly but inquisitive frog asks a bossy, know-it-all cat where he should sit. The cat orders him to sit on a log, but Frog doesn't want anything to do with sitting on a hard, cold log or the possibility of  getting splinters in his backside.  He asks the cat question after question about each animal  and the rule of where each should sit. The unflappable cat  tells the frog exactly where each should sit. 

The dynamic rhyming and fun word play will have parents smiling and children giggling. Not only will the rhyme teach kids the pronunciation of words, the frog asks about animals not normally included in picture books.   Kids can add hares, mules, gophers, storks, weasels, moles, newts, puffins, and gibbons to their vocabulary.

The cat explains each animal's seating preference until the frog asks the ultimate question and one that is bound to end with a belly laugh! You may not want to read this clever book as a bedtime story unless you want to wake little ones up! I can't imagine a child who would not be fully awake and questioning and begging for more after reading this book. Frog on a Log? is bound to be that favorite childhood  book that your toddler will ask for again and again and again (you get the picture).

I LOVED this children's book. I can see this being used in English as a Second Language classes to teach phonics and using it to teach rhyme as a poetic device.

Highly, highly recommended for every emergent reader of any age. This one is great fun!

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the F & G from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Poetry Pick: Please Excuse This Poem: 100 New Poets for the Next Generation

Please Excuse This Poem: 100 New Poets for the Next Generation
Brett Fletcher Lauer & Lynn Melnick, editors
Viking
2015
203 pages with About the Poet and Permissions pages
ISBN: 9780670014798

Please Excuse This Poem: 100 New Poets for the Next Generation is not your mama's book of poetry and it's for sure not your grandmother's poetry. This is the poetry of the street: raw, in-your-face, unapologetic and genre defying. Many of the poems throw genre and rules to the winds and take on a prose like look but sound like a defiant street prophet shouting angry verse to unwary pedestrians.

The language is raw and biting, the tone crude and unapologetic, the themes tough and urban. "Yellow Rubber Gloves" and "In Colorado My Father Scoured and Stacked Dishes" takes up the torch for minimum wage workers who are often ignored by the public performing their base jobs like mopping floors and washing dishes. "When at a Certain Party in NYC" comments that a mid-westerner would never fit in with all the "fancy" people who ooze NYC coolness. "There I Was Unrequited" ignites off the pages. The reader can feel the angst and tension in the poet's voice and the steamy rage oozes throughout the poem.

This anthology is for high school and college bound. The language is rough; the poems show a harsher reality than the poetry currently taught in schools. Some of the writing may have been torn from a diary or a scratch piece of paper. These are the thoughts that people cared about--cared enough to write them down for others to read. I would not recommend giving this collection to any person who is in a depressive state.

For a book that touts New Poets for the Next Generation, the cover has an archaic, old school typewriter--and not even an electric typewriter. This is the type of machine Clark Kent may have  used in the news room! I think the title of the book and the cover are at odds with each other. 

Recommended high school and above. Not for the faint  of heart.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

 

Picture Book Pick: Believe It or Not, My Brother Has a Monster!

Believe It or Not, My Brother Has a Monster!
by Kenn Nesbitt
Illustrations by David Slonim
Cartwheel Books (Scholastic)
2015
32 pages
ISBN: 9780545650595

Available June 30, 2015

This fun and frolicking tale takes place last Halloween when a boy's older brother finds a monster in the park. All kinds of creepy characters join in the lively romp that takes place when the older brother takes the monster home and hides him in his bedroom. Funny rhymes are spot on and illustrated with fanciful  glee by illustrator David Slonim. Readers will sense the joy that both the writer and illustrator must have experienced while working on this lively picture book. Lizards, rats, bats, spiders, toads, ravens, slugs and cats  soon appear and wreak havoc on the bedroom.

There is so much to love about this children's book. First of all, it rhymes and the rhymes work. The storyline is great and captures Halloween, fright night, monstrous creatures and a younger brother's worship and adoration of his "cool" older sibling. As each creature is added, their count goes up, so this is a rhyming, counting book that is funny, silly, scary and is a Halloween read. That makes it a home run!


Highly, highly recommended. Believe It or Not, My Brother Has a Monster! will become every child's favorite book and fun bedtime read. Kids will be delighted when they realize what kind of monster the brother brought home. And fear not! They won't have nightmares about this monster.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the F & G from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Poety Pick: Neon Aliens Ate My Homework and Other Poems

Neon Aliens Ate My Homework and Other Poems
by Nick Cannon
Scholastic
Poems by Nick Cannon
Illustrations by Nick Cannon et al
144 pages
ISBN: 9780545722810


Entertainer Nick Cannon perhaps best known for his gigs as host on "America's Got Talent" and as ex-husband to singer diva superstar Mariah Carey now has a new box to check off his resume: YA poet and author. Cannon celebrates rhyme and street art with 65 of his own poems He has contributed four illustrations and celebrates the art of six street artists who illustrate the other poems.

In "Graffiti Dreams" Cannon shows true appreciation for spray paint artists. He writes, "I spray my heart away/I breathe graffiti and dream of a new day." In a beautiful tribute to Shel Silverstein, Cannon writes, "If you want to meet him, just open a book/Turn on the light in the attic and take a look./ Where the sidewalk ends, you'll find a giving tree./ Thank you,  Shel, for all you've given me."
We can all relate to that. Shel Silverstein has inspired, influenced and entertained many decades of children and his poems  will continue to do so.

Cannon shows true talent for silliness, too. Funny poems "Halitosis" and "Brushing My Tiger's Teeth" show imagination and quirkiness. One of the oldest jokes in the world is the dog ate my homework, but Cannon claims "Neon Aliens Ate My Homework" and they show a true penchant for algebra worksheets. Who knew?

Highly, highly recommended for all poetry collections. We already know Cannon could rap, so of course he can rhyme. Every time, on a dime....

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the F & G from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Poetry Pick: Changes: A Child's First Poetry Collection

Changes: A Child's First Poetry Collection
Poems by Charlotte Zolotow
Illustrations by Tiphanie Beeke
Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
2015
40 pages
ISBN: 978149260168

Available April 1, 2015
(originally published in 1967)

Changes: A Child's First Poetry Collection celebrates the changing of the seasons through the eyes of a child. A child experiences: wonder at the first snowflake, the silence of that first night snowfall, the cold, clean bite of the snow or the first crocus peeking out or picking violets or  a Japanese beetle up close and marveling at his rainbow of colors. A fly lands on the page of a book and instead of swatting it away, the reader watches as the fly stays on just one word.

Some of the poems are remarkably short in length but what they lack in length they make up in strength.  The poem "Crocus" is only three lines long yet contains a simile and personification in just ten words! The book begins with spring and closes with a poem reminiscing on a grandfather's love and the passage of time. The seasons cycle each year yet each year brings the same: the same warm summer breezes, the same wildflowers and birds, the sky brings the same stars, the moon still shines as brightly, and we--all of us--both children and adults remember the seasons and the passage of time.

Beautiful artwork by Tiphanie Beeke celebrate each poem and evoke strong memories of happiness, family and home. Even a child who has never experienced snow can experience the cold bite of it from the winter poems. A child who has never been to the beach can experience it from the beach-y illustrations.

Charlotte Zolotow's 100th birthday would have been in 2015, so it is profoundly fitting that her book of poetry for children will celebrate this important milestone. She influenced children's publishing as both a publisher and a writer.

Highly, highly recommended for young readers and poetry buffs. This book could easily be used to teach several elements of figurative language. Poetry need not be bombastic and grandiloquent. Sometimes less is more; in this case, much, much more. In this "simple" book of children's poetry, truth lives. This is a book I love!

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the ARC from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Slam Dunk: The Crossover

The Crossover
by Kwame Alexander
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
2014
237 pages
ISBN: 9780544107717

Praise for The Crossover

Soaring, swift, and strong, The Crossover, a novel told in verse, will appeal to vast majority of readers. Not just a sports book, the novel tells the story of a close-knit family including Mom, the assistant principal and Dad, an ex-basketball prodigy whose career is cut short due to an injury. Twins Josh and Jordan Bell are both basketball stars on their middle school team. The boys are as close as brothers can get and their relationship is even stronger due to the good natured competitive games they play with each other.

Josh Bell, aka Filthy McNasty, loves his dreadlocks. They give him power and he even calls them his "wings." In "Ode to My Hair," Josh says, "If my hair were a tree/I'd climb it./ I'd kneel down beneath/and enshrine it./I'd treat it like gold/then mine it..." Later, after losing a bet to Jordan, he is forced to part with his beloved locks.

The poetry is both tough and punchy yet sometimes sweet and subtle. When a new girl turns Jordan's head in the cafeteria, Josh says, "JB's eyes are ocean wide, his mouth swimming on the floor..." Jordan's concern ends up being well deserved. The brothers disagree when Josh gets jealous but like brothers, it's over before either of them can let it fester.

Change is inevitable. Growing up is tough even in a loving family. The brothers will need each other more than ever to face the future.

The Crossover just won the Newbery Medal, but that's not why I'm recommending this book. I received this book some time ago but discovered it again when trimming down my "To Read" pile. I picked it up and read the book jacket. Once I read the first few pages, I was in love. From this ex-high school English teacher and poetry lover to you, READ this book and share it with READERS. It is a book that calls for reading aloud. Students and kids will love to HEAR this book. Give them that gift.

This would make a fantastic gift for anyone who loves sports and/or basketball. Fans of hip-hop and rap will appreciate the beats. Poetry lovers will also be huge fans. Reluctant readers will devour this in one sitting and will likely want to read it again.

Highly, highly recommended. A MUST HAVE. All grades.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Middle Grades Pick: Rhyme Schemer

Rhyme Schemer
by K.A. Holt
Chronicle Books
2014
162 pages
ISBN: 9781452127002

This charming novel in verse is a great read aloud book; it will resonate with any reader who knows a bully and let's face it: everyone knows at least one bully.

Kevin Jamison is being bullied at home by his older brother. Kevin takes his anxiety and anger out on other kids at school. Everyone thinks Kevin is rich; both his mom and dad are doctors but there's five kids in all: Patrick, Paul, Philip, Petey and Kevin, the youngest and the only "K" name. He feels like a non-person in his family.

Kevin spends a lot of time in Principal Hartwick's office for various pranks and bullying incidents. Kevin thinks in rhymes, poems and rhyme schemes. To get back at the principal Kevin becomes "The Poetry Bandit." He rips pages from old books (from the library, oh, horror!) and circles words on the page to make a poem. He leaves his poetry/art hung up all over the school. The principal is not amused but can't pin it on Kevin (pun intended). Each time Kevin visits the principal's office, he composes an ode to the principal's ugly tie of the day. Each ode is hilarious.

The librarian sees potential in Kevin. She tells him about an open mic night and promises to take him if his parents will agree.

Petey is in a rock band but their band has no name and no song. Kevin keeps coming up with names for the band which he shares in his notebook. Later, Petey realizes Kevin's notebook has some good material for songs for his band.

As Kevin learns to embrace his poetry, he becomes empowered. Once his brother gives him a chance, Kevin shines.

Readers will love Kevin and his poetry antics.

Highly recommended for grade 5-up. Great for anti-bullying programs and class discussions.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Poetry Pick: Outside the Box

Outside the Box
by Karma Wilson
Drawings by Diane Goode
Margaret K. McElderry Books
2014
172 pages
ISBN: 9781416980056

Evocative (on purpose) to Shel Silverstein's books of children's poetry, Karma Wilson dedicates her new book to Silverstein saying, "to Shel S. who encouraged every child to play with words..." Drawings by Diane Goode capture the humor and energy of each poem by Wilson. This book is a treasure trove of what will become a child's most loved poems.

Some poems are concrete like "Outside the Box" and "Inside Joke." Other poems make the reader laugh but then think! One of my favorite short poems is "Dorks and Geeks" which pays homage to all those called dorks, geeks and "artistic freaks" who become the leaders and "...great inventive souls/that make our history."

The poet has a keen eye and a refreshing sense of humor and a childlike wonder when looking at the world. In "Monkey Business," the author reminds us, "You laugh at the monkeys in the zoo,/but the monkeys laugh right back at you./While you giggle, point, and stare,/to them you're a monkey without much hair./ So there."

There is so much to love in this book of poetry. It is likely to be the most checked out book in every library that caters to children. There's something magical about a funny poem. It resonates with our funny bone and makes us feel good. Whether eight or eighty, anyone who loves a poem will love Outside the Box.

Highly, highly recommended all ages and all poetry lovers. A must have for the poetry section of every library.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Novel in Verse: Serafina's Promise

Serfina's Promise
by Ann E. Burg
Scholastic Press
2013
304 pages

Available October 2013

(image from author's website)

Poignant, beautiful, and precious, Serafina's Promise tells the story of extreme poverty and hardship through the eyes of eleven-year-old Serafina. Serafina longs to play games and run around with her friends but her family needs her to haul water several times a day. Her Manman and Gogo depend on her. There is no one else to do all the chores. Papa works in Port-au-Prince, miles from their home.

Serafina dreams of going to school to learn how to write and read. She wants to become a doctor and save sick babies, like her little brother who died. She knows she has to convince her parents that she must go to school. There is no money for school uniforms or pencils, but Serafina decides that she will work for the money somehow.

A flood destroys their village and their home. They have lost everything but they still have each other. Serafina's dream is put on hold until the family clears land and rebuilds. A series of tragedies does little to hinder this young girl's spirit, and Serafina begins to realize her dream.

Written in verse (similar to Out of the Dust by Hesse), Serafina's Promise is an easy read for reluctant readers and sure to please those readers who love poetry. Young readers will gain insight into a country they may never have known about--Haiti--with its poverty, hunger, and tragedy. Ann E. Burk is donating a portion of her royalties to Haitian People's Support Project and Pure Water for the World.

Highly, highly recommended for middle grades 4-up. Add this to any collection of free verse and poetry.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the arc from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Poetry Pick: The Pet Project: Cute and Cuddly Vicious Verses

The Pet Project: Cute and Cuddly Vicious Verses
by Lisa Wheeler
Illustrated by Zachariah Ohora
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
2013
40 pages

From the vibrant cover art to the warning label and verse, "If you're the type who oohs and aahs/ at furry faces, precious paws/ the words ahead may be alarming/ Animals aren't always charming," The Pet Project: Cute and Cuddly Vicious Verses delivers charming poetry and spot-on illustrations. The publisher's website recommends ages 4-8, but anyone who loves poetry and likes to laugh will love this cute poetry book.

An intelligent young girl asks her science loving parents for a pet. They give her a task: she must research all animals and using science, figure out what animal will make the best pet. Only then, will her  parents consider allowing a pet to join the household. So, notebook in hand, the young scientist visits a farm, the zoo, the woods, and finally her own home for a home study.

The girl writes down all her findings to present to her parents. A poem about each animal tells about her journey. My favorite is the shortest poem about the hippopatamus: "Chances of getting a hippo/ zippo."

The girl concludes by saying that all animals need care and attention but since she's forgetful, a pet may not be for her. Then she realizes that there are tiny animals everywhere that need no care, but they are hard to find with the naked eye. She asks her parents for a microscope!

The girl visits the pet store and looks at a parrot. She says, "He's memorized some sonnets/ and some long Shakespearian verses/ But when I try to talk to him/ that fowl mouth only curses!" The poetry is clever and crisp with puns (fowl, foul) and makes use of poetic devises including simile, personification and onomatopoeia.

Highly, highly recommended for all ages. Fans of Shel  Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky will like this fun poetry book.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Non-Fiction Pick: Walking On Earth & Touching the Sky

Walking On Earth & Touching the Sky:
Poetry and Prose by Lakota Youth at Red Cloud Indian School
Edited by Timothy P. McLaughlin
Paintings by S.D. Nelson
Foreward by Joseph M. Marshall III, Sicangu Lakota
Abrams Books for Young Readers
2012
80 pages with full color illustrations

Beautiful, vibrant, amazing, and poignant, the images, poetry and prose in this collection speak to the humanity in all persons. Native paintings contained throughout are touching and deeply moving. The students of the Red Cloud Indian School share their innermost thoughts and feelings about misery, silence, spirit, and dreams among their people and families. The editor lived at the reservation and taught at the school. In time, he gained the students' trust and understanding; they shared their work with him.

From student Julia Martin:

"Silence

Silence is the loudest noise I ever heard. The wind blowing gently across the prairie grass. The horses galloping around the field, the birds flying quietly to the trees. Silence is the loudest noise I ever heard."

and from Isaac Red Owl:

"Silence is the darkness of night when the moon shines bright and the pine trees make the only sound, the sound of a hundred cars on the freeway. Then, when the wind stops, there are no more cars, just silence."

In the section titled Spirit, student Tia Catches writes with wisdom, "Words of Life and Death,"

"The words of life are words of joy,
but the words of death are sad and lonely.
And often, death is soft and peaceful,
and life is often stale."

The foreward explains that life on the reservation is often a fight. The students and families face poverty, alcoholism, drug abuse, and violence. The suicide rate is high, but still there is hope among the Lakota. Their paintings and their words will stay with the reader for a lifetime.

Several students voiced the need to write, the need to express their anger, resentment, and rage and at the same time, channel that energy for the good.

Two students voice their thoughts in Why Do I Write?:

from Dusty Black Elk:

"When I write, it comes from my heart. When I write from my heart, I do not want to stop. I want to write until I pop. When I write from my heart, nothing but the truth comes out. I can make up stories with my mouth, but not on paper. When I write, it's like a dream."

and from Christina Cordier:

"I write to get away from the world, to be on my own for just a little while. I write to get all my feelings into just one sentence. I write to remeber that day forever..."

My favorite piece in the collection expresses what I hold to be true of imagination and creativity. A haiku by Isaac Red Owl:

"Imagination
Will always exist for me
Never dies for kids"

From the foreward by Joseph M. Marshall III, he explains the significance of the students' work:

"Not only are the feelings and thoughts expressed intensely personal but they are also unique in that they reveal and represent the experiences of being Lakota in today's world."


This is a rare and important book not only for the Lakota but for all American people and scholars of American history. It is the fabric of our times and lives. This book should be in every non-fiction and poetry collection.

Highly, highly recommended for anyone who loves history, art, and poetry. Highly recommended for all non-fiction collections and poetry collections.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.