Seeing the Blue Between Book Review

By Keri Burns

Bibliography 

Janeczko, Paul B.. Seeing the Blue Between: Advice and Inspiration for Young Poets. Massachusetts: Candlewick Press, 2002. ISBN 9780763608811. 

Summary

Seeing the Blue Between is a poetry anthology from many famous poets with an added letter from each with advice specifically for young poets. Bruchac tells teens not to listen to those who say they “haven’t lived long enough or learned enough” and to write anyway. Cedering encourages teens the only different between them and those create and compose is “they take time to imagine what they would like to do.” Douglas Florian confides only about 20 of his first 300 poems submitted actually got published “but that’s the point. When you first start writing you have to do it a lot before you get good at it.” Adam Ford reminds teens to edit and revise, to “let the poem mature. Poke it. Prod it… with a little time taken and a little critical assessment, ordinary poems can become quite extraordinary.” Kristine O’Connell George encourages teens to “listen to the questions in your mind… when you feel strongly and deeply about something you’ll know. That’s when your poem will find you.” Nikki Grimes wisely advises “if you’re going to invest time in writing… poetry, which is such a pure form, respect yourself and the reader enough to be honest.” Georgia Heard encourages a two column approach where “in the right column I briefly describe something that I see… using the first words that come to mind or ‘ordinary words.’ Then, I take a second and perhaps deeper look at what I’ve been looking at and describe it more precisely in the left column.” Bobbi Katz reminds users to revise again and again but also to collect vocabulary and play with words. X. J Kennedy wisely advises “Porms, unlike most book reports, are made out of feelings. So it isn’t enough just to write about what you know. You have to find something you know that you deeply care about… because good poems arise out of strong feelings.” Although all the poets wished teens luck in some form, my favorite was George Ella Lyon’s “May the ink be with you!” Lillian Morrison advises to “use a notebook for your ideas, dreams, and lines and phrases you want to remember. When you need inspiration, your notebook can get you started again.”

Analysis

Seeing the Blue Between compiled so many famous poets and really made each seem relatable and kind as they shared their process, advice, and encouragement for young people. I think any of these letters or poems would be great to show throughout the year and before any poetry exercise. Many were insistent on reminding us that poetry doesn’t happen in one draft the majority of the time and not to be afraid or upset at revising. I think this is so important for young people. I’ve mentioned before that talk of revision always remind of a youtube video called Austin’s Butterfly because it is a very simple and humbling reminder that revision makes things better, makes us better. I also love the poetry selections each poet chose to include, so many will be helpful as mentor texts and as reminders that poetry can be about anything. A special poem to be sure you read is How do I know when a poem is finished? by Naomi Shihab Nye on page 88.

Poetic elements include personification, alliteration, and hyperbole.

Personification is used in many of the poems in the book. My favorite being When Granny Made My Lunch and the brown lunch bag bullying the milk, “would broadcast itself/… getting louder and louder./ I could hear the wild rumpus of smells:/ fortissimo by noon.” Another great one is The Boxing Match, “Two bushes have come to blows./ The wind is egging them on./ Their shadows are boxing here on the rug/ in a broad strip of sun./ Wham, wham, they bob and weave,/ Then abruptly the battle is done.” I used to do an exercise in class where the students had to pick an inanimate object and personify it. We would draw objects out of a hat. The most hilarious ones often chose simple topics like a day in the life of a pencil or something else that didn’t seem fantastical but with personification became wonderful and usually hilarious. 

Alliteration is used in a few poems but my favorite is Who Clogged Up Our Schoolbell with Bubblegum? From the “sticky old snapper has clung to the clapper” to “who strangled its song with chewed string” ending with “our bell blows a giant pink bubble.” So many wonderful descriptions of an apparently hi-jinked schoolbell. Many of the poets talk about how poetry, even in free verse, has a rhythm and I think alliteration can be a powerful tool but it also helps us to stop and be more intentional as we pronounce each word and makes for a different rhythm of the poem. Alliteration can be very fun and unintimidating for some. For others it feels constraining and to them I would suggest trying assonance or even just a simple rhyme scheme so that you are still playing with but also being intentional about the sounds in your poem. 

One poem that uses hyperbole throughout is Euphonica Jarre. From trees dropping branches to rocks starting avalanches, the author uses hyperbole to give us an idea how poorly Euphonica Jarre sings. “When she opens her mouth, even eagles head south,/ little fish truly wish they could drown,/ the buzzards all hover, as tigers take cover,/ and rats pack their bags and leave town./ Milk turns to butter and butterflies mutter/ and bees look for something to sting,/ pigs peel off their skins, a tornado begins/ when Euphonica Jarre starts to sing.” This would be great way to discuss hyperbole and have a fun discussion on all the things that are impossible or improbable. We could write ideas on the board as we come up with hyperboles together. Then each student could choose to include in a short poem. Maybe even partner up and try to find a place to add a hyperbole to an existing poem. Hyperbole is a great literary device and we don’t often spend much time playing with it so this would be a fun way to intro doing just that.

Excerpt

Activity Idea

This poem has served as a great mentor text for my classes for several years. I did my own version and also created a template to help scaffold for our modified classes. I was very clear with my students that the template and mentor poem are meant to be guides but they should feel free to take it whatever direction they choose with whatever structure they want, to express themselves however they felt led. My favorite thing about this poem is getting to learn more about students home and family lives and what has stuck in their mind from their formative years. Many students shared things with me and with each other that never would have come up in normal conversation. I included in my own poem things I would have never thought to share about my childhood and family. I also think it would be great to encourage the kids to write one about something or someone else, we have done this poem about a book character for instance.

Reviews: 

• From Kirkus: “For a class, or to work up enthusiasm about writing-and not just poetry-one could hardly do better for young people than this fresh and inviting collection. In a series of letters, usually addressed to the young poets reading the section, contemporary poets write a page or two of inspirational how-to and then add a poem or two of their own. Janeczko has gathered some wonderful contributors, many of whom have made a career not only in writing but in writing for young people: Janet S. Wong, Naomi Shihab Nye, Karla Kuskin, Nikki Grimes, X.J. Kennedy, Joseph Bruchac, Douglas Florian, and many others.”
• From School Library Journal: “Letters of advice from 32 of today’s best poets for children and teens are accompanied by their poems. The letters are personal, friendly, and supportive. Over and over, young poets are encouraged to read. The importance of revision is emphasized, as is emotional honesty and looking at the world with fresh and open eyes. Some of the statements are wonderfully pithy, as when Lillian Morrison claims, “Poetry makes you smart.” Plenty of humor is found as well. The selected poems cover a wide range of styles, moods, and subjects. Some follow the letters beautifully; Naomi Shihab Nye’s comment, “Now I see revision as a beautiful word of hope” is followed by her poem “How do I know when a poem is finished?””
• From Publishers Weekly: “”Love words play with them find the meanings of those you don’t know,” writes poet Michael Dugan. He, along with 32 other poets including Ralph Fletcher, Douglas Florian, Naomi Shihab Nye and Jane Yolen offer words of encouragement and a few poems of their own in Seeing the Blue Between…”

Falling Hard Book Review

By Keri Burns

Bibliography 

edited by Franco, Betsy. Falling Hard: 100 love poems by teens. Massachusetts: Candlewick Press, 2008. ISBN 9780763648398. 

Summary

Falling Hard is a poetry anthology about love featuring poems written by “teenagers from all over the world.” The poems vary in purpose and feeling but all touch on the teenage experience with love. Editor Betsy Franco compiled this book with “submissions from a diverse group of poets” from various cultural and geographical backgrounds, various gender identities and sexual orientations, and even neuro-atypical teens. Some had written many poems and been published before and for others this was their first poem ever. Titles range from My Love Line Color Spectrum to A Broken Snow Globe to Jellybones to ramen noodles and hot chocolate. There is definitely something for everyone is this wonderful collection.

Analysis

Falling Hard: 100 love poems by teens is a great anthology that will appeal to teens because it is written by teens. I enjoyed it as an adult because it is still relatable and definitely humurous. With only 144 pages, it is a quick and easy read. Since it is an anthology it would be easy to use parts of it without needing the whole when you are trying to use it in a classroom or library setting. I think the variety and uniqueness of these poems made it a really engaging read.

Poetic elements include synesthesia, allusion, and metaphor.

Synesthesia is defined as “a rhetorical device that describes or associates one sense in terms of another…. for instance, they may feel like they a color, smell a shape, or taste a texture.” In the poem My Love Line Color Spectrum, the poet relates each male relationship to a different color and feelings. Such as “with *Eric/ I’m in green mode, just thinking about all/ the gifts he’s going to give me when he/ come over! Talk about $ signs.” With another boy, she describes him as “Rob is so blue. He tells me all his problems/ and how he’s sorry for telling me about his day/ and not worrying about mine!” And of course, “last but not least, there’s *Sam. He’s my/ favorite out of the love line. When I’m with him,/ I’m the whole color spectrum!” This reminds of a poem I really enjoy called Yesterday I Had The Blues by Jeron Ashford Frame. Color poems are a great way to get started or to just try something different and they are one the forms recommended by Paul Janeczko in our Module 6 notes for experimenting with poetry.

Allusions are featured in some of the poems and it really surprised me which allusions they picked as teenagers that I could still enjoy and relate to as an adult. In Making Love to Shakespeare, she alludes ruffled shirts, Hamlet’s “to be or not to be”, Puck, Iago, Lady Macbeth, and mutton chop sideburns as well as referring to Shakespeare as Billy. Endlessly hilarious and delightfully original, this poem had me chuckling and entertained. One of the untitled poems (page 81) had many allusions including “Poe’s Lenore/… Fitzgerald’s Zelda/… Homer’s Muse” that made it a literary treat for anyone familiar with these words. Another poem uses allusions to speak the language of nerd. In Pledge of Allegiance to a Nerd, she brilliantly references computer jargon, Star Wars, “forty-seven digits of pi”, “Escape from Mordor!”, lunar eclipses, and algorithms. This poem felt like an ode to Weird Al’s Talk Nerdy to Me. It was brilliantly done and as someone who has myself fallen in love and married a nerd, I can agree with every bit of it. I think this would be a great mentor poem for students to feel free to discuss what is attractive to them or the silly things their partner does that they find so endearing. For those teens who are single they could make it into a formula of their dream person or relationship. I feel like this would result in sweet and hilarious poems that would help all students feel successful.

Metaphors are present throughout but often used in unconventional ways that make this book and these poems so unique and unashamed. From Look at My Feet, with “your hair is a chicken salad/ …. your nose, a flat steak” to My Apologies and her “Monroe-meets-Hepburn dress” to Terminal and “the gaping-throat tunnel (that) smiles/ and swallows me.” Every poem has brilliant language and so many use metaphors and similes but in ways I’ve never seen before, ways that adults wouldn’t have thought to combine. These poems speak to teenage thoughts, feelings, and experiences in a brilliant way. I could see using some of these as an exercise in metaphors. Having two bowls with lots of different objects listed on single strips of paper, draw one paper from each and figure out a way to make a metaphor out of them. This would be an excellent way to play with language and words.

Excerpt

Activity Idea

This poem would be a great mentor text for students to write with their own romantic allusions. Allusions can sometimes feel hard to do because so many are to older or more literary classic things. But allowing students to allude to whatever romantic couples they want would really open up the possibilities and allow them to use their prior knowledge and experience. I know if it was me, my version would include Han and Leia, Allie and Noah, and Sheldon and Amy or Leonard and Penny. Making poetry fun and unconventional frees kids up to use their imagination and creativity and will make the poem they end up creating truly their own.

Reviews: 

• From Kirkus: “Romantic love brings out a whole range of emotions, and all are on display in this richly diverse collection of poems. Franco, editor of three other anthologies of teen writing, presents poets ranging in age from 13 to 18. They are gay, lesbian, straight, transgender and bisexual. Most of the poets represent a diverse America, but some are from other parts of the world.”
• From Booklist: “Just the teens’ names and ages are given, but their writing reveals a wide diversity of race, sexual identity, maturity, and lifestyle. With a spacious open design, the poems are not arranged in any particular order, true to the way readers will dip in and browse. Some of the simplest lines say the most: “I want you less than I thought I did. / And I love you more than I ever knew.” From the pain of breakup and denial to affection and desire, the feelings in these poems will ring true to gay and straight teens alike.”
• From Library Media Connection: “Falling Hard is a collection of love poems written by teenagers about every facet, detail, side, dimension, and ingredient of love. Edited by Betsy Franco, this collection will be one that students will understand, read, and reread because they are featured in every poem.”

Forget Me Not Book Review

By Keri Burns

Bibliography 

Terry, Ellie. Forget Me Not. New York: Macmillan Publishing Group, 2017. ISBN 9781250144010. 

Summary

Forget Me Not is a fictional novel in verse told in dual point of view of Calli and Jinsong. Both middle schoolers, Jinsong has lived in the same apartment for 12 years, has a strong family support system and consistent friend group. Calli lives with her single (but always dating) mom and they move everytime her mom’s relationships fail. By the end of the novel, Calli is entering her eleventh new school and all that change and uprooting has caused Callie lots of difficulties each time. Calli also has Tourette’s syndrome, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety, and trichotillomania. It is hard for Calli to fit in at school and she gets bullied often. Jinsong is her neighbor and befriends her in the beginning but begins to distance himself when she encounters bullying at school. Jinsong does mature past this and (spoiler alert) they end up with a beautiful friendship. (additional spoiler alert!) My favorite part was in the final chapter where Calli announces to her entire new class that she has Tourette’s, what it is like, and then laughs and they laugh with her. In my head, Calli has begun a new chapter of her life accepting and loving herself which leads everyone around her to accept her and love her too!

Analysis

Forget Me Not won many awards (listed at the bottom of this post) and it isn’t hard to understand why. We have too few novels in verse, especially from a middle school kid’s perspective but even fewers novels (in verse or otherwise) that share the experiences of being non-neurotypical from an own voice perspective. This novel is very well done and really helps build empathy and a deeper understanding for anyone who takes the time to read it. Since it is a novel in verse, you could even use sections to accomplish this without the reader needing the entire plot of the novel. I know this is marketed as a middle grade novel but I intend to add it to my high school collection because it is VERY well done and I know that kids will be better for having read it. I also know that the non-neurotypical population is underrepresented, especially as main characters, in books so I want to help combat that every chance I get.

Poetic elements include line breaks/spacing, repetition, and imagery.

Throughout the verse chapters, the imagery and inner dialogue help us understand what Calliope’s experience with Tourette syndrome is like. In My Tics, she describes the sounds and feels of her tics in a way that gives the reader a vivid image of her experience. “Wiggle my nose/ pucker my lips/ roll my eyes/ clear my throat/ clap my hands/ tap my feet./ So much for keeping them hid.” In other poems, she stretches out her words to illustrate the sound of her tics, like in the chapter Frog, “Crooooaaaak. Crooooaaaak.” Other poems she uses capitalization to get the sound across, like in Sometimes, “Sometimes my tics/ are like gentle whispers,/….. But other times they’re like a / SHOUT!” All of these vivid images of what is like for to have Tourette syndrome and how new tics might appear at any time make the reader understand her experience and feel empathy for all that she is going through. The school bullies would hopefully think twice in real life if they read more books like this one. These are all great mentor texts to have our students practice using sound and spacing to enhance the imagery of their poems.

Line breaks and spacing allow for each word and line to stand on their own and have the recognition and importance they deserve. In the poem Teeth, she uses the spacing and allusion to Jaws with her “pounding heart– / da-dum/ da-DUM/ DA-DUM!” This is a moment that Calli awake from a bad dream in the middle of the night, an ordinary adolescent moment that has nothing to do with her Tourette’s and shows she goes through the same fears and experiences everyone else does plus all the challenges that her syndrome brings. Other times she uses line breaks to draw out time and meaning, like in Tic Tock, Eat the Clock, “Eat buttered peas/ one/ by/ one/ until the pile is gone./ Next is bread/ thick and dry,/ not easy going down./ Cough./ Cough./ Gasp!/ Unfortunately,/ water isn’t until ten./ “Take a drink,” Mom says,/ “I can’t. Not yet.”/” Calli also has obsessive-compulsive disorder which can cause repetitive actions, motions, routines, and habits. In the poem above, Calli can’t deviate from the order in which she needs to eat the items on her plate. In a later chapter she injures one thumb and feels forced to keep things symmetrical so injures the other thumb. These behaviors aren’t associated with Tourette’s so I really appreciated the author’s detail and that she is drawing from her own experience to show a deeper and multi-faceted view of what disorders can look and feel like and that many people can struggle with more than one. This would be great to lead into research on different non-neurotypical syndromes, disorders, and conditions.

Many of the poems that feature repetition are describing her tics but I chose this one because it illustrates how some of her thoughts are repetitive as well. In Understand, Calli is thinking about her relationship with her mother, “And maybe I can’t change/ her/ any more than/ she/ can change/ me./ can’t change the fact she/ can’t stand to be single,/ can’t stand to not know/ if the grass is greener someplace else,/ just like she/ can’t take away my tics,/ or my need to eat my food/ in a certain organized order.” The repetition of the word can’t is powerful but she is not only trying to establish that her mother is unable to change Calli but she is also realizing that Calli is unable to change her mother. Many times throughout the book, Calli focuses on her own limitations or someone else’s but in this poem she recognizes that she and her mother have the same limitation which is big for someone who has to face so many challenges others don’t. I could imagine having a discussion with students or a gallery walk with different struggles and we each realize how many we have in common.

Excerpt

Activity Idea

This poem would lend itself to a dipping our toes into shape poetry and playing with words on the page. It has great examples of using line breaks and white space to make your words and poem more meaningful. There is also repetition in this poem and ALL CAPS moments, along with dashes, a rhetorical question, dialogue, and metaphor. This poem has so much to offer it’s hard to imagine what you couldn’t use it for. I think a fun activity would be to give students a blank page with only the word tumbling written the way it is here and allow them to create their own poem including that word. I could see many talking about cheerleading or gymnastics, while others mention clumsiness, depression, or other ways to relate it to their chosen topic. It reminds me of the drawing exercise where you get a squiggly line on the page and everyone makes something different with it. I think this would make for a great exercise and a non-intimidating way to showcase different ways to use words, sounds, line breaks, and white space.

Reviews: 

• From School Library Journal: “This exploration of Calli’s neurological disorder and her struggle to find her place will stay in the hearts and minds of readers for a long time.”
• From Booklist: “In this sweet and sometimes sad story, readers follow middle-schoolers Calliope and Jin. Callie moves often, any time her mom gets out of a relationship and decides to start somewhere new. Jin’s in student council and one of the popular boys at Callie’s new school, as well as her new neighbor. She has Tourette’s syndrome, exacerbating the anxiety and loneliness she feels, which is compounded by the fact that she never stays in one place long enough to make a friend. Jin is torn between maintaining his reputation and getting closer to Callie, whom he’s immediately attracted to. Terry, who herself lives with Tourette’s syndrome, movingly draws from her own experience as she describes Callie’s experiences and behaviors. The narrative alternates between Callie’s and Jin’s perspectives, with Callie’s chapters in affecting, varied poems and Jin’s in plain prose and e-mails. This heartfelt, multivoice story with a meaningful message about friendship and acceptance is perfect for kids who appreciate realistic, character-driven stories.”
• From Publishers Weekly: “Terry, who has Tourette syndrome herself, offers enormous insight into an often-misunderstood condition, writing in verse for Calliope’s chapters and prose for Jinsong’s. Her poetic explorations of Calliope’s anxiety and Jinsong’s moral struggles are honest and moving.”

Awards:

2020 Louisiana Young Readers Choice Award Nominee

2020 Arkansas Charlie May Simon Book Award Nominee

2020 Indiana Young Hoosier Book Award Nominee

2020 Missouri Truman Readers Award 3rd Place Winner

2019 Michigan Great Lakes Great Books Award Winner 

2019 Maine Student Book Award Nominee

2019 Utah Beehive Book Award Nominee

2017 Association for Mormon Letters Middle Grade Novel Award Finalist

2017 Nerdy Book Club Awards: Poetry and Novels in Verse

Books Between Podcast: Best Middle Grade Books of 2017

A Mighty Girl’s 2017 Best Books of the Year

MG Bookshelf Best of 2017

2017 Whitney Award Nominee

Book Riot 100 Must-Read Middle Grade Books for the Summer (2017)

Under the Mesquite Book Review

By Keri Burns

Bibliography 

McCall, Guadalupe Garcia. Under the Mesquite. New York: Lee & Low Books Inc., 2011. ISBN 9781600604294. 

Summary

Under the Mesquite is a fictional novel in verse about family, hardship, and resilience based on the author’s own teenage experiences. This story takes place in Eagle Pass, Texas and is told from the perspective of Lupita, a young girl in high school, as she navigates her family’s move to America, her mother’s cancer, struggles at school, and being in charge of her seven younger siblings. The book has humorous moments and serious experiences all expressed in beautiful free verse poetry. The title comes from the place where Lupita finds strength and solace and is able to write about all she is feeling, under the mesquite tree. There is beautiful Spanish language sprinkled throughout each poem and it reminds us that she is living in two worlds with Mexico being the country of her birth the United States being her family’s new home. Lupita’s perseverance and resilience are inspiring and gripping while being a humbling reminder that so many are struggling with battles we don’t know about.

Analysis

Under the Mesquite won the Pura Belpre Author Award, the 2013 Tomas Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award, the 2013 International Literacy Association’s Promising Poet Award, and was a William C. Morris Debut Award Finalist. It is easy to see why so many people found value and meaning in Under the Mesquite. McCall’s use of language and ability to express this story in verse is amazing and mesmerizing. I asked my husband to read the first chapter and he said it was the best poem he ever read. He meant this so much that he didn’t put the book down until he finished it. He had never been exposed to a novel in verse and was fascinated at the art form. It is truly an art form and McCall does a brilliant job of it. I think many people can relate to the various parts of Lupita’s life and will find this to be a book you can’t put down. I have already checked out two more of her books from my local library. They are All the Stars Denied and Shame the Stars, in case you want to add them to your TBR pile too.

Poetic elements include imagery, metaphor, and personification.

One of the funniest uses of imagery in this book is during Drama, as Lupita is in her acting class at school and her teacher is trying to help her speak without her accent. “‘Here, put these in, one on each side / of your mout, como ardilla listada.’ / He puffs out his cheeks with air / to demonstrate, making a chipmunk face. / ‘Don’t suck on them,’ he instructs. / ‘Just let them sit there. / If you’re serious about acting- / and I think you are- then you need to / lose you accent.’ …. My face / is so stretched out, it feels as big as / one of those hot-air balloon characters / floating over the booths / at la Feria, the annual fair / in Piedras Negras.” In this passage, we could talk about the harmful messaging that you would need to discard a part of who you are and how you speak in order to make it as a professional. We could relate this in health class to the harmful societal and industry standards for beauty. We could discuss this in history class when we speak of immigration and assimilation. So many ways we could relate this to real experiences of people sitting next to us in class or living next door to us at home. This biased thinking is harmful and damages people’s self-esteem and their ability to retain their cultural and linguistic ties.

Metaphors are sprinkled on almost every page but the poem called Señorita brought me back to memories of reading House on Mango Street and the chapter on her name Esperanza. In Señorita, Lupita explains once her friends turned fifteen they embraced the new experiences like wearing lipstick but when she puts it on, it “is sticky and messy, / like strawberry jam on my lips.” She also explains “For Mami, señorita means / making me try on high-heeled shoes / two inches high / and meant to break my neck.” It is easy to see as she adds her tias point of view as well that Lupita isn’t interested in pantyhose, floral dresses, or being “a big Mexican Barbie doll.” She much prefers her jeans and tennis shoes like other ‘normal teenagers.’ I think many of us can relate to not fitting our parents ideas of who and what we should be or look like. I can especially relate to her expression of what growing up means to her father. “For my father, señorita means / he has to be a guard dog / when boys are around. / According to my parents, / I won’t be allowed to date / until I graduate from high school.” This typical interaction between a teenage girl and her parents is one I think most daughters and parents can relate to. All of the relationships and scenarios in this book feel so genuine and realistic. I could see using this poem to have the students discuss societal or parental expectations in their generation but also for us to look back at how those norms and expectations have shifted and grown over time and history and across different cultures. In this poem, Lupita also expresses wanting to be the first one in her family to earn a college degree. This is something many students can relate to and if they can’t it’s helpful for them to be able to step into someone else’s shoes to hear that perspective. I think the way Lupita feels that señorita means an end to her childhood joy and frivolous adventures is something worth discussing as well. I see even high school students who don’t have or take the time to be a kid. As an adult, it is important, even with all the duties and responsibilities to remember to take the time for things that bring you joy. Mental health has such stigma but this poem would be a great way to talk about healthy balance in life and the way we spend our time.

My favorite poem, because I’m a mom too, is the story of us. The personification throughout feels so natural and vivid. Lupita thinks she is sneaking around without her mother knowing, hoping to discover her mother’s secretos. Instead of secrets, she finds “just a crumpled tissue / inside a plastic bag / that sighs quietly / as I lift it out of Mami’s purse. / The tissue blossoms in my palm / to reveal a tangled brown mass, / wrinkled, leathery, and dry.” As this mysterious object falls to the floor, her Mami walks in and “fear grips my limbs. / I can’t move.” As she puts the item, which turned out to be Lupita’s umbilical cord, back in its bag and tissue, Mami adds “‘This,’ she says, ‘is the story of us.'” Even though we know a tissue can’t blossom and fear can’t actual grab us, we can all imagine this moment with her beautiful language. Although I have never kept an umbilical cord, I’m sure we can all relate to keeping sentimental items that remind us of our ties to a person or moment. This would be a great way to have the students do a show and tell with a story. They could bring an object and tell the story that goes with it. I think we would be pleased with the myriad of objects that have meaning to our students and how much better we would get to know them after their share out.

Excerpt

Activity Idea

This poem would lend itself to a great discussion on stage fright, language barriers, and the mask we put on for others. I also think this is a great example of a parent genuinely wanting to know about your life and experiences. When they ask you how your day was at school, this is the kind of honesty and openness they long for. They remember when you were four, like my oldest, and wanted to tell them everything at least four times. Somehow, when we become teenagers we think we can no longer talk to our parents. Even as Lupita shares about her field trips and competitions, she doesn’t share her true feelings of what they have all been going through the last two years. This is also a great time to remind each other that even when we have some idea of what is going on in someone else’s life, they are always dealing with more than we know. To be kind to each other and give grace because everyone has their own struggles is a skill and practice that is good for life. I also think if I was a drama teacher I might use this poem to talk about how your greatest emotion is going to come from you being able to draw from your own experiences as you act.

Reviews: 

• From Kirkus: “A resilient Mexican-American girl copes with familial obligation and loss in this free-verse novel. Drawing from her own teen years for inspiration, McCall highlights life in the borderlands: “En los Estados Unidos / I trained my tongue / and twisted syllables / to form words / that sounded hollow, / like the rain at midnight / dripping into tin pails / through the thatched roof / of our abuelita’s house.” Lupita’s first-person tale captures pivotal moments of her high-school years in the border town of Eagle Pass, Texas, with glimpses back at her first six years in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico…With poignant imagery and well-placed Spanish, the author effectively captures the complex lives of teenagers in many Latino and/or immigrant families.”
• From Booklist: “The close-knit family relationships, especially Mami and Lupita’s, are vividly portrayed, as is the healing comfort Lupita finds in words, whether written in her notebooks or performed onstage.”
• From Library Media Connection: “The mesquite tree is resilient; it survives the harshest of climates and its roots can survive even when torn from the ground. It is an appropriate symbol in this story, told in verse, of Lupita. Based on the author’s teenage years, the book is an homage to survival despite great tragedy. Using beautiful metaphors and lyrical Spanish words, McCall writes simply of what it is to love and lose and to find strength in nature.”

Dark Emperor & Other Poems of the Night Book Review

By Keri Burns

Bibliography 

Hob

Sidman, Joyce. Dark Emperor & Other Poems of the Night. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010. ISBN 9780547152288. 

Summary

Dark Emperor & Other Poems of the Night  is a picture book anthology of poems on different night time creatures and plants and their unique role in our ecosystem. Each poem is not only accompanied with great illustrations but also with a descriptive paragraph explanation of interesting scientific facts about the poems featured creature or plant. There is a helpful glossary of some of the more scientific terms at the back of the book to help young readers. Many of the poems are free verse so that makes the style less intimidating and feel a little more grown up than the younger rhyming poems students might be used to.

Analysis

Excerpt

Reviews: 

• From Publisher’s Weekly: “In Sidman’s delicious poems, darkness is the norm, and there’s nothing to fear but the rising sun.”
• From Booklist: “This picture book combines lyrical poetry and compelling art with science concepts.”
• From Newbery Award Committee: “Sidman has elegantly crafted twelve poems rich in content and varied in format. Companion prose pieces . . . are as tuneful and graceful as the poems. This collection is ‘a feast of sound and spark.’”

You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You: Very Short Tall Tales to Read Together Book Review

By Keri Burns

Bibliography 

Hoberman, Mary Ann. You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You: Very Short Tall Tales to Read Together. New York: Little Brown and Company, 2014. eISBN 9780316406390. 

Summary

You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You: Very Short Tall Tales to Read Together is a picture book anthology of poems with tall tales of some of the biggest names in our storytelling history. The author manages to weave in truths and exaggerations with creative language and dialogue to teach the reader more about each infamous character. As the cover states, the focus is on “heroes strong and great, / who did things you might not believe / … some of them did (live), not all. / Sometimes the deeds they did are real; / but sometimes they are tall.” Each poem highlights a different infamous character for how we know them best and what made their stories stand the test (of time). All the poems have a dialogue so that they can be read by two people and they are color coded for ease. Accompanying each poem are multiple color illustrations of the hero’s fantastical deeds.

Analysis

Excerpt

Reviews: 

• From Kirkus: “An exuberant read-aloud collection… Emberley’s illustrations capture the liveliness of the poems…beckoning readers to join in and relish the fun.”
• From Booklist: “The energy never flags, neither in Hoberman’s trademark bouncy rhythms nor in Emberley’s exuberant illustrations.”
• I could not find a third review of this book.

César: si, se puede! Book Review

By Keri Burns

Bibliography 

Bernier-Grand, Carmen. César: si, se puede!. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 2004. ISBN 9780761452836. 

Summary

César: si, se puede! is a picture book anthology of poems about César Chávez, the found and organizer of the United Farm Workers, as well as highly significant Latino leader in US history. The author manages to weave in historical and biographical facts as well as creative language to teach the reader more about César Chávez in each poem. As the cover states, the focus is on highlighting Chávez for his “service others, sacrifice, determination, nonviolence, and respect for life and the environment.” Each poem details a different time in Chávez’s life . Along with beautiful illustrations for each poem, the back of the book includes citations and references, a glossary, a timeline of Chavez’s life in bullet form as well as a brief biography in paragraph form. These added elements to ensure factual and accurate portrayal of César‘s life make it easy to see this being incorporated into social studies curriculum as well as ELA and even art class.

Analysis

Excerpt

Reviews: 

• From Kirkus Reviews: “Aimed at slightly older children than Kathleen Krull’s Harvesting Hope (2003), this powerful biography in poems relates incidents in the life of César Chávez with insight and a sense of wonder…The final words of the last poem are Chávez’s own, and a fitting tribute: “True wealth is not measured in money or status or power. It is measured in the legacy we leave behind for those we love and those we inspire.” The numerous Spanish phrases will make reading aloud a challenge for non-Spanish speakers, but learning to do so is worth the effort. Backmatter includes notes, a chronology, a list of sources, a prose narrative, a selection from Chávez’s own words, and an extensive glossary.”
• From Social Justice Books: “César: ¡Sí, Se Puede! Yes, We Can!, a Pura Belpré Honor Book, will help develop empathy in young readers, will help them understand the stuff and dreams that make heroes out of ordinary people.”
• From School Library Journal: “The life and times of César Chávez are vividly re-created in this collection of poems. Where most biographies stick to the facts of what a person did, this one also touches on the man’s character and values.”

Wicked Girls Book Review

By Keri Burns

Bibliography 

Hemphill, Stephanie. Wicked Girls. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2010. ISBN 9780061853289. 

Summary

Wicked Girls is a fictionalized novel in verse inspired by the Salem Witch Trials. This story takes place in Salem 1692 and is told from the perspective of three young girls, Ann Putnam Jr., Mercy Lewis, and Margaret Walcott. The book shares each girls fears, motivations, and feelings, as well as their own involvement, during the events of the Salem Witch Trials. Reminiscent of The Crucible, a fictionalized retelling of the events in play form, this book makes the events easy to understand for young adult readers. The power of the first person perspective really furthers the empathy and investment you have as a reader in the outcomes of these character’s stories.

Analysis

Poetic elements include imagery, personification, and metaphor.

Hemphill’s imagery helps to really put the reader in the minds of each of the three girls as well as feel like they are truly witnessing the events. The poem Hangings is Mercy’s recount of George Burroughs hanging. “Ann cries ‘The Devil stands beside Reverend Burroughs / and whispers the words of the prayer in his ear.’ / … My tongue weights down my mouth, / and I am not sure whether or not to speak, / but then I affirm, ‘Aye, the Devil stands there.’…His neck snaps and his head hangs, / like a broken twig, apart from his body.” These young women had the power to sway everyone’s thoughts so completely, to convince a whole crowd, and each other, to convict and accuse and sentence fellow citizens to death. We might think they are unaffected but her knowledge of what Burroughs is capable of, like his rape of her in Flattered, pages 71-72, which she also refers to in The Grand Conjurer, pages 149-150, give rationale for at least Burroughs hanging.

Personification is present throughout but there are also as many comparisons to being like elements of nature. One such poem is Into the Woods, where Margaret meets up with Isaac in the woods. “his hands are branches / and he shakes me loose / until it seems I will be / bare as the winter trees. / But the wind kicks up / and I wake and I smell / pine needles, I am an evergreen / I think. I tell him / I don’t shed my leaves, / well, not today, / and he takes my hands / and I become the branch / shaking him loose / amidst the flurries of snow.” Hemphill is able to help us envision nature participating in the story as well as the girls being like elements of nature, uncontrolled and powerful. This would be a great poem for students to use as a mentor text to write using personification but also relating their characters to nature or other elements that aren’t people. The back and forth makes the visual and depth of meaning even more powerful.

Hemphill’s metaphors are cognizant of the time and context of the story. In this particular poem, Who Knows What is Brewing?, we see a pot and ingredients referenced and can’t help but think of witches brew since the Devil and magic are such big parts of this story. We are also challenged to wonder if any of them could truly imagine what their actions will result in. Ann describes Margaret’s actions as she “locks her eyes on me / as though she be wishing to stir my pot / and test what ingredients I hold. / I keep my lid closed.” This is such a powerful metaphor and so intriguing to think what if Ann had remained resistant would everything have turned out differently? This is such a stark contrast in Ann on page 30 (this poem) and the Ann we hear on page 310 (Hangings) proclaiming the Devil’s voice in Burrough’s ear. This would lend itself to a great discussion on peer influence and on how we allow ourselves to grow and change as an individual.

Excerpt

Activity Idea

This poem would lend itself to a great discussion on how power corrupts. Margaret’s doubting herself and her friends but many around them, including Aunt Ann (Ann’s mother), are taking advantage of the power the girls are wielding instead of stepping in to stop the corruption and death their power is causing. To think that grown adults would allow themselves to be so deceived and then that they would further, as in Aunt Ann’s case, push the deception for their own interests just shows the corruption power can cause. This is also a great opportunity to be introspective about who we trust and when we should question that trust. I’m sure the students could write poems about other ways they have seen power corrupt or one person using their influence for their own gain. It would be especially interesting to have them depict corruption of power in their social studies classroom with examples from history and government. I could also see this being inspiration in art class to depict a visual of power corrupting. I know it makes me think of this image (below) and what might have been different in so many scenarios if one person had decided to stop.

Reviews: 

• From Kirkus: “Hemphill offers a fresh perspective on an oft-told tale by providing lesser-known Salem accusers with a variety of compelling motivations that will resonate deeply with contemporary teens. Twelve-year-old Ann Putnam is starved for her brusque mother’s love. Her older cousin Margaret is jealous of anyone her betrothed Isaac’s wandering eye falls upon. And 17-year-old pretty, blond servant Mercy Lewis is tired of the surreptitious touches of pious Puritan men. When two other girls in their village fall prey to fits, Ann, Margaret and Mercy recognize the opportunity to be seen in a society that brands them invisible. But as their confidence grows, so does their guilt. They know exactly what they’re doing, but the rewards are too sweet to stop…”
• From Kansas City Public Library: “The girls do appear to be acting out with a motive for attention, rather than an actual fear of witches. This being said, the girls are not alone in their hysteria. The adults who continue to coddle them appear to be living vicariously through them, encouraging them to act outrageously and directing the girls’ accusations to those who have wronged them in the past. Although fictional, the stories of these girls present a plausible explanation of the actual historical events in Salem Village. With our current legal system and expectations in society, it’s difficult to look back and understand what happened in Salem. But if you consider the girls and their need for attention, the adults who contributed to the manipulation, and the wild hysteria that accompanied all of it – you can see the breakdown of a community that fell apart quickly.”
• From Historical Novel Society: “Stephanie Hemphill uses verse to construct a beautiful – if grim – portrait of the Salem Witch Trials, and to examine the timeless dynamic of teenage girls jostling for social place. Hemphill’s spare poetry captures the austerity of Puritan Massachusetts, and the hopelessness of being a young girl hemmed in by community censure and strict religious limitations. The Salem dialect fits seamlessly into each poem, and Hemphill’s characters come across as complex and believable people.”

Superlative Birds Book Review

By Keri Burns

Bibliography 

Bulion, Leslie. Superlative Birds. Atlanta: Peachtree Publishers, 201. ISBN 9781561459513. 

Summary

Superlative Birds is a picture book anthology of poems about birds that show unique features and characteristics of many different birds. The author manages to weave in scientific facts and creative language to teach the reader more about each bird in each poem. As the cover states, the focus is on “Which birds can do what birds do, best? Which put world records to the test? Which birds are beaks above the rest? Superlative Birds! Come see!” Each poem highlights a different bird for what makes them the best, whether they are the smallest, or fastest, or have the most feathers, the best hearing or smell, that reinforce the characteristic that bird is best at. Accompanying each poem is a 2-3 paragraph scientific note and explanation for that bird’s unique characteristic that adds a little more context and understanding, especially for any of us who are learning these facts for the first time. The glossary at the back of the book helps with our discussions of the scientific features of birds. A very interesting and deepening feature of the book’s complexity and literary merit are the Poetry Notes at the back of the book that discuss different poetic techniques or forms used in each poem. The author also included more bird resources at the end to help us get ourselves and our students and families out in the world of observing birds.

Analysis

Excerpt

Reviews: 

• From Kirkus Reviews: “With characteristic humor and carefully crafted language, poet Bulion offers readers amazing facts about birds of our world. Poems and accompanying science notes describe 18 birds that excel in some fashion and explain what nearly all birds have in common; the first poem introduces her focus, and the last notes environmental threats. These engaging poems read aloud beautifully.”
• From School Library Journal: “A “top of the class” example of combining two different subjects that are approachable and a joy to read. A win for science and English classrooms.-Thomas Jonte, Pensacola State College, FL”
• From The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books: “In works such as Superlative Birds, the collaboration of poetry and science invites children of varying reading preferences, learning styles, and worldviews to enter nature study through their own chosen door.”

Long Way Down Book Review

By Keri Burns

Bibliography 

Reynolds, Jason. Long Way Down. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2017. ISBN 97814814438254. 

Summary

Long Way Down is a novel in verse inspired by Reynold’s childhood and his friend’s experience with gang violence, death, and juvenile incarceration. This story takes place during one short but long elevator ride and covers “Sixty seconds. Seven floors. Three rules. One gun.”(book jacket) The main character, Will, has just lost his older brother and plans on seeking revenge, as rule three demands, when he is visited by ghosts of the people in his life who lost their lives to gang violence when they were adhering to the three rules which are “No. 1: Crying. Don’t. No matter what. No. 2: Snitching. Don’t. No matter what. No. 3: Revenge. Do. No matter what.”(book jacket) Will is able to see his childhood friend/ crush, several male family and friends including his father who he has no real memories of, and finally his brother. They all have different discussions with him and try to get him to understand the price they paid, and the price he would have to pay if he continues down his current path, is too high. They all want better for him than they chose for themselves. As Will realizes all the people he is seeing are dead, he definitely hopes he is not already dead himself. But while he has a desire to live, I don’t think it outweighs his grief and the expectation of revenge he thinks he must fulfill, until he sees his brother. This story is both heartbreaking and heartwarming. To know that so many in our world today can relate and are in similiar life situations, because of the decisions of others before them that they think must be continued, is so frustrating and disheartening. However, Reynolds’ ability to bring about the hope for change and the possibility of a new direction in Will’s life, can help us all feel like we have the potential inside us to choose our own path and leave things better than they were left for us.

Analysis

Poetic elements include imagery, personification, and repetition.

Reynolds’ imagery helps to really put the reader in Will’s mind and in his grief. The chapter I’m not sure is Will’s recount of the night his brother passed. “I’m not sure / if the cops asked me questions. / Maybe. / Maybe not. / Couldn’t hear nothing. / Ears filled with heartbeats / like my head was being helf / under water. / Like I was holding my breath. / Maybe I was. / Maybe I was / hoping I could give some / back to Shawn. / Or maybe / somehow / join him.” The shock of losing a loved one and the way it seems so unreal and so all consuming at the same time is expertly conveyed here.

Personification is present throughout. One such poem is In That Bag, where Will conveys what was inside the bag Shawn was holding when he was killed. He was carrying a regular corner-store thank you bag with eczema soap for their mother. Will personifies her eczema as “curse the invisible / thing trying to eat / her.” Both boys have heard her screams and seen her clawing at the pus and scales that wreck her skin. Another such poem is I Felt Like Crying, as he portrays crying as a “person / trapped behind my face / tiny fists punching / the backs of my eyes / feet kicking / my throat at the spot / where the swallow / starts. / Stay put, I whispered to him, / Stay strong, I whispered to me. / Because crying / is against / The / rules.” I think most of us can relate to tears being so strong it feels they will take us over even when we are fighting so hard to not cry.

Reynolds’ repetition also often happens as Will is trying not to cry as he is attempting during I Looked Back At Shawn, “one of my tears / bursting / free. / But only one / so it didn’t count. / No crying. / No crying. / No crying. / No crying.” His repetition often takes on the form of anaphora as in the chapter I Had Half a Second, “act normal / act natural / act like / the only rules / that matter / are the ones / for the elevator.” Some of what Will repeats to himself is advice or warnings passed down to him and others are him telling himself things so that he can follow the rules that were passed down. He often repeats these things as a mantra so that he can ‘stay strong.’

Excerpt

Activity Idea

This novel-in-verse is about grief and loss and not letting it destroy you. Too many dismiss gang violence and the lives it takes as not their problem or like those in it somehow brought it on themselves and that their situation is so different from our own. This excerpt reminds us, Shawn was a brother, a son, a friend, just like all of us have. The loss of his life was just as devastating to his family and friends as one of our family members would be to us. As I mentioned in another book review, I can’t think of anything more worthwhile than learning empathy. Until we see all lives as valuable we won’t do the work needed as a society to save all lives. This would make for a great opportunity for students to write their own poem on something they have experienced that they want others to understand or empathize with.

Reviews: 

• From Kirkus: “There is considerable symbolism, including the 15 bullets in the gun and the way the elevator rules parallel street rules. Reynolds masterfully weaves in textured glimpses of the supporting characters. Throughout, readers get a vivid picture of Will and the people in his life, all trying to cope with the circumstances of their environment while expressing the love, uncertainty, and hope that all humans share.”
• From Social Justice Books: “This ain’t the year for sugarcoating the truth. Jason Reynolds’s 2017 novel, Long Way Down, gives it to us in heart-wrenching verse that demands we pay attention — not only to the story, but also to our own truth.”
• From School Library Journal: “Told in verse, this title is fabulistic in its simplicity and begs to be discussed. Its hook makes for an excellent booktalk. It will pair well with Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give and Reynolds’s previous works. The unique narrative structure also makes it an excellent read-alike for Walter Dean Myers’s Monster.”