A JAR OF TINY STARS:  POEMS BY NCTE AWARD-WINNING POETS was written by 10 selected poets by children.  The collection gives the reader many glimpses of various types of poems and topics.  Each of the ten poets has written a short quote about their feelings on poetry and a short biography can be found in the back of the book.  There are pencil/pen sketches of each poet and simple illustrations to embrace a bit of depth to their poems.

Valerie Worth writes, “…Never forget that the subject is as important as your feeling:  The mud puddle itself is as important as your pleasure in looking at it or splashing through it.”  Page 59.  This statement added a better understanding of her poem, “pebbles.”  She does not capitalize her titles. 

Pebbles belong to no one

Until you pick them up—

Then they are yours.

The poem continues with words that make the reader feel they are at the beach and they are seeing the black, the white, and the smooth pebbles.  The water is lashing at your feet and you are searching for just the right one. The reader may compare the selection of "pebbles" to the selection of many things in their life.  Making choices about food, friends or books can become a challenging thought. The rhythms of the words are soothing and give a feeling of calmness.

Somewhere the best pebble must

Lie hidden, meant for you

If you can find it.

Valerie Worth is a poet children take pleasure in reading.  Her simple poetic form and free verse style make reading her poetry enjoyable for all ages.

“Poetry is simply a way of revealing and celebrating the essentially poetic nature of the world itself.”  Page 84

Eve Merriam has written a poem that is humorous and inviting to read. “How to Eat a Poem” is a delicious free verse poem.

Don’t be polite.

Bite in.

Pick it up with your fingers and lick the juice that

                    may run down your chin.

It is ready and ripe now, wherever you are.

You do not need a knife or fork or spoon

                    Or plate or napkin or tablecloth.

For there is no core

Or stem

Or rind

Or pit

Or seed

Or skin

To throw away.

This is a lively fun poem. The author uses figurative language.  The comparison of words to possibly a piece of fruit is a great example of a metaphor. “Pick it up with your fingers and lick the juice,” pick up the book and digest or take in the words.  Eve Merriam says, “You may not ‘get’ all of a poem the first time you read it, because the words and the built-in music are so concentrated.  Don’t let it worry you; just go on to the end…..”  Students would enjoy this type of poetry more if they would read it several times and then hopefully they would “get it!” Page 80

A JAR OF TINY STARS is an engaging collection of poetry for readers of all ages.  It whets the senses and stirs up the imagination.

INSECTLOPEDIA by Douglas Florian shows great imagination for the insect and spider world in poetry form.  INSECTLOPEDIA contains twenty-one humorous poems that make children chuckle.

The “Inchworm” is a concrete poem.  I inch, I arch, I march along.  I’m just a pinch, a mere inch long.  I stroll and stick on sticks in thickets, and never pick up speeding tickets. The reader can feel the movement of the inch worm as the words move upward on the page and form an upside down “U” on the page. The illustration depicts a street scene collage with bright yellow and black signs, red stop signs, and a bright yellow and black inchworm inching along the street.  The background is watercolors painted on brown paper bags.  Mr. Florian uses consonance with the use of “ch” and “ck” in this poem.

Another one of my favorites in this book is “The Army Ants.” 

                   Left

                           Right

              Left

                           Right

              We’re army ants.

              We swarm.

                     We fight.

              We have no home.

              We roam.

              We race.

              You’re lucky if

              We miss your place.

As the reader reads the words, one’s eyes move left and then right.  The words give the reader the feeling they are marching right in step with the ant and possibly with a uniform on.  As I read this poem, TWO ANTS by Chris Van Allsburg came to mind. Mr. Florian’s ants have no home, where as Mr. Van Allsburg’s found a home with sugar crystals.  The collage of green and brown watercolor depicts a large field of ants marching to victory.  The words “Ants” at the top of the page written in calligraphy brings an unusual focus to the readers eyes.   “The Army Ants” contain an echo of “we” at the beginning of several of the lines.

Douglas Florian writes with imagination and pulls the reader in with his use of words. The language and word play create more interest in reading his poems.  His illustrations also comprise the visual imagery that children enjoy.  To learn more about Douglas Florian the poet and artist go to:   http://www.bookpage.com/0204bp/douglas_florian.html

THE DRAGONS ARE SINGING TONIGHT by Jack Prelutsky brings seventeen humorous poems to the reader.  Even if you do not know anything about dragons or like dragons, this assortment of poems will bring about a new perspective of these creatures. Mr. Prelutsky wrote these poems about the time of Jurassic Park mania.  Children and adults alike have always been fascinated with dragons, dinosaurs, and large lizards.

According to a book review in Children’s Literature by Susie Wilde, she mentions the story about Prelutsky and his childhood.  “Through years of going into Chinese restaurants and reading their place mats, he noticed that he was born in a year of the dragon, he took the dragon to heart.  Prelutsky grew up in the Bronx with an asthmatic mother who wouldn’t allow pets and dreamed of having his own dragon…a small one of course, that he could manage and train.   Some of the poems reveal his boyhood dream.”  Upon reading this review, the poems and illustrations had more meaning.

One of my favorites is “I Wish I Had a Dragon.”

I wish I had a dragon

With diamond-studded scales,

With claws like silver sabers,

And fangs like silver nails,

A dragon fierce and faithful,

Always ready to defend me

Or to take me for a ride.

I wish I had a dragon

With eyes of shining gold,

Who breathed a plume of fire

Whenever it was told,

A dragon so ferocious

It might frighten Frankenstein,

But not a lazy dragon

Who sleeps all day…like mine!

“I Wish I Had A Dragon” is a rhyming poem and includes several similes; ‘With claws like silver sabers’ and ‘fangs like silver nails.’  The illustrator, Peter Sis, brings a warm feeling to each page with the oil and gouache paintings on a gesso background.  Each double page illustration is portrayed with greens, grays, blues, and red colors, framed in gold.  The dragon on this page is coiled like a snake and a little person is resting in the center.  The red sky appears to be bringing the end of the day.  As I reflect on the book review by Susie Wilde, this particular poem makes me think about the dream that Mr. Prelutsky was having of owning his own dragon.

“I Have a Secret Dragon” was also a favorite of mine.

                   I have a secret dragon

                   Who is living in the tub,

                   It greets me when I take a bath,

                   And gives my back a scrub.

                   My parents cannot see it,

                   They don’t suspect it’s there,

                   They look in its direction,

                   And all they see is air.

The poem continues to tell the story of how his imaginary dragon splashes with him in the tub, plays silly things and dries him with his wings. The white painting of the dragon looks somewhat like an ice sculpture.  The little boy is having a rollicking good time in the tub.  The golden frame has small brown waves and shower faucet heads in the corners.  It is very clever.  This poem also makes me think of Polar Express and the magic ring of the Santa Bell.  His parents do not hear the ring of the bell and the little boy’s parents do not suspect the dragon is there. Imagination is a great tool and a wonderful way of escape!

Children enjoy Jack Prelutsky poetry and continue to check out his books. The rhythm, imagery, humor and colorful illustrations of THE DRAGONS SING TONIGHT keep students coming back for more and more readings of Prelutsky.

To learn more about Jack Prelutsky and how to write a poem go to:

 http://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/poetry/jack_home.htm

Kalli Dakos has written PUT YOUR EYES UP HERE: AND OTHER SCHOOL POEMS.

The book contains 46 humorous, silly, or hilarious school related poems plays. Some of the poems are short and some are two pages long.  They are descriptions of life like-situations that occur in the classroom.

Ms. Roy is the teacher and on the first day of school she wore a  yellow stovepipe hat on her head, black patent shoes, a skirt that had wires sticking under it, and was yelling ,”Happy New Year” to her students.  The children of course were laughing and trying to figure out what kind of a teacher they had. The poems all reference Ms. Roy and Penny the girl.

“Introducing a New Me” is one of my favorites in this collection.

There’s a new ME this year,

An on-time Me,

A clean-desk Me,

A first-to-hand-in-assignments ME,

A listens-in-class-to-the-teacher ME,

A teacher’s-pet-for-the-first-time-in-my-life ME,

An-always-willing-to-be-good-and-help-out-ME,

A dead-serious-get-the-work-done-and-hand-it-in-

Before-it’s-due ME.

The problem is

The new ME

Is not like ME

At all.

This particular poem echoes the word “ME” and is referring to Penny.  The pencil drawings of Penny and “ME” reflect the perfect student with a “star” head and the other a regular little girl. The feelings of Penny and trying to commence a new beginning are felt and revealed through the word use of “ME.” Dakos uses voice with Penny and makes the reader feel like this could be “ME!”

Another favorite written by Dakos is “A Cemetery for Pencils.”

          I never thought a lot

          About pencils

          Until Ms. Roys

          Brought out

          Her pencil cemetery.

          When I saw those old,

          Broken-down,

          Used up,

          Worn-out,

          Pieces of wood and lead,

          Pushed into

          Styrofoam gravestones,

          And read the book,

          “Dead Pencils”,

          Her students wrote last year,

I started to think.

The narrative poem continues with the description of good owners and bad owners.  Some pencils were shaved, chewed or flushed in the toilet and some were decorated with yellow, red, and orange yarn.  The imaginary trip through a Styrofoam cemetery gives us a feeling from the past students in her classroom. The pencil illustrations are clever and witty for this poem.  The cute terrier with a mouth full of pencil bits really makes one chuckle.

Students in grades second through sixth need a steady diet of Kalli Dakos each morning.  Her witty and fun way of writing poetry would brighten anyone’s day.  Her website gives interested readers access to other books she has written and includes her new book OUR PRINCIPAL PROMISED TO KISS A PIG.   http://www.kallidakos.com/Poems/youreyes.htm