A Jar of Tiny Stars is a collection of several poets, all of whom have been NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English) winners for their significant contribution to children's poetry. "This anthology offers children a delicious sampling of their favorite poems" since the poems were selected by children. The book is complied with work from ten NCTE Award-winning poets: Arnold Adoff, John Ciardi, Barbara Esbensen, Aileen Fisher, Karla Kuskin, Myra Cohn Livingston, David McCord, Eve Merrium, Lililan Moore and Valerie Worth and the styles vary as much as the authors. The book is divided into sections by authors and their works and each chapter of poems is introduced with quote from the author about how or why they started writing or what poetry means to them.
One of the poems that is truely universal and timeless is "I Left My Head" written by Lilian Moore. "I left my head somewhere today./ Put it down for just a minute./ Under the table?/ On a chair?/ Wish I were able to say where./ Everything I need is in it!" This poem is free verse since it is mostly unrhymed and lacks a consistent rhythm. It is universal as anyone who reads it can relate to the fact that sometimes we are forgetful. In this poem age, sex, or nationality is not a factor because this poem crosses all boundaries of time and place. Whether it was read five years ago, two days ago or ten years from now, the reader will be able to relate to this poem. That is that makes this a poem, the fact that it is "experience distilled."
The poems are beautifully complimented by Andi MacLeod's pen-and-ink drawings and Marc Nadel's portraits of the poets. The black and white sketches of the contributors, a quote from each of the poets and brief biographical sketches round out the collection of sketches filled with playfulness and action described in the words.
Cartwheel to the Moon is a collection of poems by Sicilian poet Emanuel di Pasquale. In this collection of poems he writes about what is dearest to his heart, his childhood in Sicily. He writes about what it was like to grow up on Sicily, in the Mediterrtanean Sea. The poems in this book appeal to your every sense. They are so vivid that one can practically see, hear, smell, touch, and taste Sicily. These poems seem to "reach out and grasp things."
One of the poems that pulls at your heart is "My Father". It is a narrative poem that tell the story of his father. It is written in a form that is easy for anyone to read and understand , even a child can enjoy this narrative poem. It starts with a simple recollection of sitting down at dinner and accidently biting his lip then goes on to talk about a day at the fair where he spend quality time with his father. Emanuel speaks so fondly of his father as they did many things together that one starts to feel the love he had for him. The reader doesn't realize that the poem is a tribute to his father until they read, "My father had a mustache that tickled even my mother/I don't remember this because he had gone away by then/ My mother began telling me stories of my father after he left- died, she said." The poem continues with Emanuel telling of his fond memories as well as those of his mother and father's friends. At the end of the poem it seems as if there is some resentment towards his father, "Lastly, I remember a stillness in the house-it must have been when he forgot to live."
This poem is one of the many in this book that take you through every season of the year. The poems are written in simple sentences that take you from beginning to end in a manner that captivates you. Divided into four sections according to the seasons, the unrhymed and mostly untitled poems vary in length. Some are just a sentence or two placed carefully on the page to extend meaning, while the most poignant poem is "My Father." The illustrations in this book compliment the poems and don't take from them by being overpowering. Done in watercolors each illustration in the book is as realistic as possible since the illustrator traveled to Ragusa, Sicily, to research the illustrations for this book. An especially moving illustration is that of a child standing at the doorway as if waiting for his father to come home. Only the shape of the boy can be seen; it gives it a sense of loss as the boy's father has died. This is the only illustration in this poem where no expression can be seen, it's as if the loss of facial features represents the loss of the father.
THE WINTER SUN
The winter sun's a grumpy guy.
He scarcely gets to see the sky.
He doesn't speak. His rays are weak.
His disposition's grim and bleak.
Winter Eyes is a collection of poems written by Douglas Floran in which he writes about winter and some of the things that might happen at this time. He uses various forms of poetry ranging from haiku and concrete to lyric poems, yet the words he uses in them are simple enough for a child to read and understand. Thoughtfully arranged, the selections flow naturally from one to another while he uses line spacing and repetition on some for a creative effect.
The Winter Sun is a lyric poem, melodic or songlike, that personifies the winter sun. It focuses on the feelings of the sun as it is being described as "grumpy." Each line explains how the sun might feel since it is hardly seen during the winter. "It scarcely gets to see the sky and doesn't speak because his rays are weak." This is very true since the sun only comes out for brief periods during winter and it doesn't warm up much. It further personifies the sun by stating that "his disposition is grim and bleak." It's as if the sun is complaining about not being let out more during the winter.
The illustrations in this book are watercolor paints and colored pencils that add to the poems. In "The Winter Sun" the illustration is that of a small house in a forest filled with "naked trees." The use of browns, gray, yellows and reds; the colored-pencil and watercolor delicately portray long shadows and a tangerine orange grumpy sun who, "barely dares to lift his head/Before he's ordered back to bed." There is a blanket covering the forest as the sun miserably takes in the view for a brief period of time. The sun looks angry, "grumpy" that it is only allowed out for a short period of time. Winter-lovers and winter-haters alike will find poems that strike chords, in a collection that is perfect for reading alone by the fire, or as part of snug storytimes with the kids.
This selection of seventeen poems, stanzas, or prose lines on the fairy people is a collection of works from several poets such as Annette Wynne, Rachel Field, May Justus, Thomas Hood, Ivy O. Eastwick, Barbara Hales, Lee Bennett Hopkins, Solveig Paulson Russel, Christopher Morley, Mary Howitt, Hilda Conkling, and Sir James M. Barrie. Several poems included are written anonymously. Sir James M. Barrie opens and closes the book. The book is separated into poems about elves and poems about fairies and the styles vary from haikus and narrative forms to lymricks..
One of my favorite is "The Plumpuppets", a lyrical poem that is melodic and image-laden. It is about children going to sleep after their prayers have been said and little Plumpuppets, fairies of beds that have nothing to do but watch sleepy heads, coming out to do their work. "They turn down the sheets and they tuck you in tight/And they dance on your pillow to wish you good night!" Their work doesn't end there, "If your pillow is lumpy, or hot, thin and flat/The little Plumpuppets know just what they're at/They plump up the pillow, all soft, cool and fat-/The little Plumpuppets plump-up it!" This verse is repeated after the first stanza and in the last stanza as if to demonstrate the importance of "Plumpuppets." While reading poems about fairies and elves may not be to everyone's liking, this collection of poems will delight children who read them.
The use of ink in these black and white sketches complement the poems and are not overpowering. The styles of the sketches go from mildly distorted reality to misshappen, oddly joined animals--a cat whose tail looks as flat as a sash, or rabbits who appear in midtransformation, but all appropriate to the subject. In "The Plumpuppets" the sketch shows a child sleeping unaware that the "plumpuppets fluff her pillow and tuck her in" careful not to wake her. The illustration also depicts the happenings of the day as a doll with an injury on her arm is carefully drawn looking over her owner. It gives the reader a sense of warmth as the poem is read.
Texas Women's University
A requirement for LS5603.