Straus and Giroux. ISBN: 0374357668.
This collection of poems takes everyday items, such as pencils and umbrellas, and describes them in a manner that makes children look at them in an entirely new way.
The poems don�t have any rhyming for the most part, and are all free verse. There is some humor, but it�s very subtle. For instance, in �lunchbox,� Worth implies that the apple and the sandwich are going to fight with one another.
There is a lot of distinctive language used throughout the poems. Words like �saunter�, �dolorous� and �skulking� are used (from �peacock�, �fish� and �cellar� respectively). The images being described can easily be visualized because of the language. In �crayons� the crayons are described as �snapped sticks/worn down/to grubby/stubs.� This description immediately brings to mind the image of an old, worn down crayon.
The poems have a sort of choppy rhythm that is created by using very short lines, such as �the shore/cottage/that I like/best has/cracked steps� from �geraniums.� The main sound element that is used is alliteration and is evident in �roller coaster� (clattering, climb, crest; slippery, safety) and �lunchbox� (soft, square, sandwich). The poems are full of figurative language. Similes are used in �blue jeans� (�neat as a pen�), �panda� (�masked like a skull�) and �cellar� (�skulking like a sly goblin�). There is extensive use of personification in �umbrella�, �october�, �ocean,� �lunchbox� and �hammer and nail.� To name just one example, in �umbrella� the umbrella is �sleeping/or moping/or quietly/hatching/a plot.� Metaphors are also used throughout the collection, such as the comparison of clouds to �pillars of quartz� in the poem, �clouds�.
Sense imagery is also used in the poems in this collection. In the poem, �prism,� the phrase �jewels of color� helps the reader to actually �see� the colors in a prism. In �onion,� an onion is described as having a �papery seal� that immediately reminds the reader exactly how the outside layer of an onion feels to touch.
The collection has a table of contents, and because the subjects of the poems are the same as the poems� titles, no subject index is needed. A first line index might have been useful, but because the poems are relatively short, it isn�t that big of a hassle to skim through them in order to find what you are looking for. The poems aren�t grouped in any specific way, and the style of writing doesn�t vary from poem to poem. The illustrations are very simple black and white sketches that complement the poems quite nicely.
The poems are certainly imaginative with all the similes and personification. The poems� contents are relatively timeless and universal, because they deal with common subjects such as pencils, crayons, clouds, etc. that for the most part exist everywhere in the world and will exist for a long time to come.
I wouldn�t recommend these poems to very young readers because I think some of the language might be too complex for them to fully understand. This collection would be better enjoyed and appreciated by readers in at least middle to late elementary school. The poems will provide these readers with fresh insights on how to view the objects around them.
