From: Steven Engelfried <sengelfried>
Date: Sat, 2 Apr 2005 13:19:01 -0800 (PST)

One of my favorites from last year is Kristine George's "Hummigbird Nest," an excellent example of a connected series of poems. The individual entries are varied and could stand alone, but the series adds up to a strong story. There's a beginning, middl e, and end, but the flow of the book never seems forced or altered to fit a plot. She builds suspense and excitement into simple events, like hummingbird chicks leaving the nest, with careful observation and memorable images (the "capital Vs" of the chic ks' open beaks, or the eggs described as "two promises made," the nesting mother
"gentle captain / of your cobweb ship"...). Add those fantastic Barry Moser watercolors and it's very satisfying package.
 
-Steven Engelfried
 Beaverton City Library
 
  These aren't exactly new voices, but I think Prelutsky's "If Not for the Cat" was an excellent haiku collection, with wonderful Ted Rand illustrations. Scieszka's
"Science Verse" was hilarious and very clever. And Nicki Grimes' "What Is Goodbye," a very
 moving series of poems about the death of a sibling.
  As for newer names, I really enjoyed the picture book poem "A Sock Is a Pocket for Your Toes" by Elizabeth Garton Scanlon. It's a little like Ruth Krauss, imagining a wild variety of things that are pocket-like ("a cave is a pocket for a bear, / a breath
 is a pocket full of air") in a way that's both silly and thought provoking, with good strong rhythm. "My Chinatown" by Kam Mak...




                
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Received on Sat 02 Apr 2005 03:19:01 PM CST