Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today  by  TeacherDance.

For Poetry Friday --  "Bees, snails, & peacock tail:patterns & shapes--naturally"  written by Betsy Franco and illustrated by Steve Jenkins.

 

Franco introduces her young readers to the natural world through poems that celebrate nature's geometry -- from the delicate artistry of a spider's web to the brilliant design of a male peacock's tail.  Her poetry often mimics the shapes as when the verse spirals like the snail shell she's describing.

Jenkins clever paper collages are perfect counterpoints to the text and beautifully rendered.

Additional scientific information on the various subjects of the poems is provided in an appendix.

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today  by Teaching Young Writers.

My selection is "Autumnblings : poems & paintings"  by Douglas Florian.

 

Florian brings fun to autumn verses with a flourish by his inventive wordplay and through the simplicity of his artwork colored in the warm, rich golds and reds of the season.  The season's holidays and nature's changes are some of subjects treated to his signature punning humor with favorites such as: "Hi-bear-nation"-- "Autumn falls in late September" and -- "Owlphabet."

Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday is hosted today by Wendie's Wanderings.

My selection is The 13 nights ofHalloween written and illustrated by Guy Vasilovich.

Inspired by THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS, Vasilovich gives his young readers a ghoulish countdown to Halloween. A young big-eyed Witch leads the audience through the series of creepy gifts provided by her Mummy, beginning with:

"On the first night of Halloween my mummy gave to me: a bright shiny skeleton key.

Drawing on his extensive experience in animation, Vasilovich employs inky blacks, vibrant purples, and shimmering oranges and yellows in a gothic cartoon style that gives a nod to Tim Burton with its angular look.

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today  by WritingThe World for Kids.

My selection is "Please bury me in the library " written by J. Patrick Lewis and illustrated by Kyle M. Stone.

 

Fifteen poems in a variety of forms celebrate books -- words, pictures and the joy of the written language. 

 

There's the light-hearted --

 

What if Books Had Different Names?

What if Books Had Different Names?  

Like Alice . . . in Underland?

Furious George,

Goodnight Noon,

Babar the Beaver,

A Visit from Saint Tickle Us.

 

And the thoughtful -- Necessary Gardens

 

Libraries

Are

Necessary

Gardens,

Unsurpassed

At

Growing

Excitement. 

 

Lewis draws inspiration from many familiar wordsmiths from Lewis Carroll and Edward Lear to Shel Silverstein and Myra Cohn.

Stone's richly layered illustrations enrich without overpowering the text.