Ria Vyas

5/10/11

English 112B

Annotated Bibliography: Children�s Poetry

In a nation where most young adults these days despise reading, the importance of children�s poetry is extremely significant. Young adults will never learn to love and appreciate poetry if they have never been exposed to poetry they are guaranteed to like. They will find the English language difficult to use and poetry will be difficult to understand for the rest of their lives if they are never given the chance to have fun with it at a young age. The thought of Children�s poetry should make anyone of any age smile.

Children�s poetry has two ingredients that make it so incredible: the combination of simplicity and creativity along with the ability to get a child to learn without even realizing it. There are so many young adults who hate poetry and simply do not understand it or appreciate it and that is because they were never given the chance to read it and enjoy it when they were little. It is extremely important to develop a love for it at a young age so that it stays with us as we discover the world and continue to study poetry further. Children�s poetry is soft and nurturing it gives comfort to children at a young age. At the same time, it is inspiring and creative and allows a child�s imagination run wild. It covers topics and issues that children can relate to and learn from. It also allows them to imagine a world where anything can happen and there are no limitations.

It is the genre of poetry that leads into every other genre and without it many people fail to see the beauty in any poetry at all. Children�s poetry is an essential part of growing up and learning to love poetry. Authors like Shel Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky provide children with the ability to appreciate poetry and develop a love for it a small age. Children�s poetry is the kind of genre that will stick with young mind forever and it will remain in our hearts forever to always be appreciated just like one of my favorite poems from when I was in first grade, Shel Silverstein�s �Ourchestra�:

So you haven�t got a drum, just beat your belly.

So I haven�t got a horn – I�ll play my nose.

So we haven�t got any cymbals –

We�ll just slap our hands together,

And although there may be orchestras

That sound a little better

With their fancy shiny instruments

That cost an awful lot-

Hey, we�re making music twice as good

By playing what we�ve got!

Silverstein, Shel. Falling Up. Illustrations by Shel Silverstein. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1996.

I was attracted to this book because it was my favorite poetry book from when I was growing up and I distinctly remember falling in love with Silverstein�s simple yet profound poems. Some of the poems completely depend on the child�s imagination and the book really encourages children to think outside the box. Some of the poems are completely made up and inspire crazy ideas while others are very relatable and discuss feelings that children actually experience. The book also encourages the growth of a child�s vocabulary. Silverstein often uses more complex words in place of simple ones to inspire a child�s sense of learning. The illustrations are simple yet at the same time intricate. While it looks like Silverstein used nothing but a pencil, the amount of detail in the pictures cannot be dismissed. He focuses a lot on expressions so that the reader can really feel involved with the emotion within his writing. They also really blend well with the poems. This book provides children with an excellent beginning when they are first discovering poetry and can be very influential in their ability to write, learn, and appreciate poetry as a whole.

Viorst, Judith. If I were in Charge of the World and Other Worries. Illustrations by Lynne Cherry. New York: Simon &Schuster, 1981.

This is something every child dreams about, how the world would be if they were in charge. It discusses all the topics that children are often puzzled by and real worries that children have in the initial years of their lives. The vocabulary usage in the book is not simple but not overly difficult. It would require a younger reader to really study some of the words but it would also enhance a child�s vocabulary tremendously. The way the topics are treated and talked about are very creative, the author really comes down to a child�s level of thinking which makes it very suitable for the age group at hand. On the other hand, while the poems were outstanding, and though the illustrations were well done and detailed, I do not think they are the kind of pictures that would help engage the reader or help with the understanding of the poems. The seemed a little vague and random to me as if they didn�t really compliment the text at hand. It touches on real things that children face in life and once again the topics are ones that children can relate to and learn from.

Janeczko B. Paul. Hey, You! Poems to Skyscrapers, Mosquitoes, and Other Fun Things. Illustrations by Robert Rayevsky. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 2007.

This book includes poems that address actual things like your sneakers or a mosquito, things many children would never believe could be actual poetic topics. It sets your imagination loose and shows that you can address things that have no real qualities similar to that of humans. Its vocabulary and ability to engage a child�s sense of creativity are its winning qualities. It pushes young readers to observe something and actually think about what they would want to say to it, given the chance. The illustrations in this book were wonderful as well. They were bright and colorful and related perfectly with the poems. It is simply a fun book and it is a book that could really encourage children to be interested in poetry, while challenging their imagination at the same time.

Prelutsky, Jack. The New Kid on the Block. Illustrations by James Stevenson. New York: Greenwillow Books, 1984.

Like some of the other books, this book fascinating in the way it inspires children to explore the unknown and think about things they have quite possibly never thought about, like jellyfish stew, or why you should never argue with a shark. This book is like a small adventure for children encouraging and challenging their imagination. I truly appreciate the level of creativity that these poems have and the wonderful imagery Prelutsky uses to describe his wacky ideas. This book is perfectly suited for young children and it will definitely be able to expand a young reader�s vocabulary. Prelutsky also uses unique metaphors which are great in terms of introducing these literary ideas to young readers. Similar to Shel Silverstein�s book, the illustrations in this book are simple. From the looks of them it seems like a pencil was the only tool used to draw them. However, the illustrations are perfect for the poems at hand and they are fun. They relate to the poems and serve their purpose perfectly without getting to complex and intricate. This was a wonderful book of children�s poetry as it is an enjoyable book that will inspire creativity in young minds.

Perry, Andrea. The Snack Smasher and Other Reasons Why it�s not my Fault. Illustrations by Alan Snow. New York: Atheneum Books For Young Readers, 2007.

This book discusses those small wonders and incidents that we can never seem to explain. For example, it discusses things like why there is always one puzzle piece missing from the puzzle or why your normally well behaved hair has a mind of its own on picture day. The answers to these never ending questions are given in this story through completely made up imaginative characters and it is a fun book for young readers to read and relate to. The themes are ones that every child has experienced and those annoying situations can now be turned in to amusing situations. The vocabulary used in this book is very descriptive but is also seemingly harder than the normal simple words, which is why this book would be better for higher elementary school readers. This book also completely challenges a child�s imagination and is a good book that focuses on inspiring creativity within children. The illustrations in this book are exceptional and extremely unique. They are actually unlike any drawings I have ever seen before in a children�s poetry book. They are fun and totally wacky but also relate to the poems entirely. This is a book of fun inventive poems because it is an entertaining book to read and inspires inventiveness and the ability to make things up in your head and describe them so well that they are able to become real.

Dahl, Roald. Dirty Beasts. Illustrations by Quentin Blake. New York: Penguin Group, 1983.

This book definitely has more complex themes and vocabulary within the poems. I was drawn to this book because I loved the author Roald Dahl when I was in elementary school and even junior high. This book is filled poems about all those animals that we don�t quite understand, the ones we find creepy or even scary. All of the poems in the book are skillfully written and they all carry the same scary theme within them. The author, Roald Dahl, is definitely a master of wicked humor; the poems are scary while at the same time entirely humorous. This book is filled with beautifully humorous and colorful illustrations which definitely help grasp the reader�s attention. The illustrations also perfectly match the text of the poems. I would recommend this book to children who like animals but don�t mind the creepy-crawly ones either. This book is highly entertaining.

Prelutsky, Jack, and James Stevenson. It's Raining Pigs & Noodles: Poems. New York: Greenwillow, 2000. Print.

This is an outstanding book of poetry for children due to Prelutsky�s ability to play with the English language and gets his readers involved in the game. He leaves the child constantly wondering what tricks he is going to pull out next. He uses puns, jokes, and wordplay along with, silliness and slapstick humor. His rhymes are also exceptionally witty. He discusses topics completely outside the box and really emphasizes the importance of imagination. He proves to children that poetry can be about absolutely anything, from your parents having the flu to the world�s fastest turtle. It is through authors like Prelutsky that children develop their love for poetry. The poems are not difficult to understand, any child can relate to them and it inspires children to use their imagination and be as creative as possible.

Lewis, J. Patrick., and Simon Bartram. Once upon a Tomb: Gravely Humorous Verses. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick, 2006. Print.

This book of poems is different and unique. All twenty-two poems each tell a tale of an untimely demise. The book includes the death of a school principal, a bully, underwear salesman, and many more. Each poem is written in a witty humorous sort of way as if to disguise the atrociousness and harsh reality of death. This book can actually really help a child deal with encountering death for the first time as well. While all the poems are short and simple, they will definitely make children laugh.

Silverstein, Shel. Where the Sidewalk Ends: the Poems & Drawings of Shel Silverstein. New York: HarperCollins, 2004. Print.

This book is one of my favorite poetry books. Shel Silverstein capitalizes on creativity and one�s imagination. All the poems are silly and fun, however he also talks about things that children often think about. He describes the freedom kids feel when both their parents are sick or how the world just cannot be round. He finds the ability to make light of things children have trouble understanding and describes all the ridiculous thoughts that constantly run through a child�s mind like living in a tree house or what would happen if they lost their face. His poems are so descriptive and fun that children simply fall in love with poetry.

Prelutsky, Jack, and Christopher Raschka. Good Sports: Rhymes about Running, Jumping, Throwing, and More. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2007. Print.

This book was also one of my favorite poetry books as a child. Prelutsky writes seventeen poems about football, baseball, basketball, ice-skating, and other sports fill this energetic picture book. The poems are energetic, enthusiastic and filled with emotion and Chris Raschka's wonderful artwork compliments the poems perfectly. These poems are exhilarating because the majority of children can relate to the topic of playing sports. Prelutsky manages to capture a large range of emotions, form winning to losing, to the joy of simply participating. He finds a way to make poetry fun and appeal to elementary school children. The poems are humorous but also have valuable lessons that kids can learn from. The illustrations are amazing as well. Every page is a blaze of color and motion and the watercolor effect makes the pages colorful and fun to look at. Overall, this book of poems is one any child can relate to and will definitely inspire a love for poetry.