Off the Shelf 

It’s April and that means it’s Poetry Month. Personally, I love poetry. It’s painting with words. It’s playing with words. It’s snapping a picture of a moment with words. It can devastate, it can make us laugh, and everything in between. For your reading pleasure, I present the following books of verse.

May B: A Novel

By Caroline Starr Rose

Age 8-12

Nary a word is out of place in this survival novel told in verse. May has been sent by her father to help out at another homestead until Christmas. But when the husband and wife go missing, May is left to fend for herself as winter sets in on the vast and empty prairie.

If you read reviews of May B, you’ll find such words as “lyrical” and “immediate” and “spare,” and they are all true. Though there is far more white space on the page than text, the free verse tells a dramatic and emotional story of courage. Rose also creates a true voice in May B, a young woman who behaves realistically (warts and all) in the face of such a terrifying circumstance. Don’t be fooled by this quick read. It leaves you with much to ponder. This is writing you can savor.

One kvetch: I appreciate that Rose wanted to recognize that individuals have struggled with learning disabilities throughout history. But, personally, I felt it was unceremoniously shoehorned into this story, i.e. May B spends perhaps too much time thinking about her reading problems rather than dealing with the fact that she’s stuck on the prairie by herself as winter sets in. Did I mention she is running out of food?

Follow Follow: A Book of Reverso Poems

Poems by Marilyn Singer

Illustrated by Josée Masse

Ages 6 and up

Allowing only for changes to punctuation and capitalization, Singer has created a style of poetry in which a poem can be read both from top to bottom and bottom to top. Each version of the poem tells a different side of the same story. Like her first reverso collection, Mirror Mirror, this collection focuses on the classic fairytales.

I am amazed by this collection of poetry. The amount of time it would take to find the correct wording baffles me. Follow Follow’s poetry not only wows with its cleverness, but also manages to beautifully interpret the classic tales.

Outside Your Window: A First Book of Nature

Poems by Nicola Davies

Illustrated by Mark Hearld

Ages 5 and up

Written by award-winning author and biologist Nicola Davies, this gorgeously illustrated poetry book captures the sights and sounds of nature’s seasons. Beautiful double page spreads of artwork - rendered in paper-cut collage - are a feast for the eyes and the poetry is “simply” fabulous for young ones.  (Guest Reviewer: Maria Panozzo, children’s librarian emeritus)

National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry: 200 Poems with Photographs That Squeak, Soar, and Roar!

Edited by J. Patrick Lewis     

Over 200 animals are featured in this poetry book.  From the big ones to the little ones to the quiet ones and the noisy ones, some are winged ones and some are water ones, and there are even some really strange ones!  Children will love to see their favorite animals photographed in this book alongside wonderfully written poems about them.  Featured poets include J. Patrick Lewis, Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, Rudyard Kipling, Jack Prelutsky, Robert Louis Stevenson, Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and many more!  A section in the back describes how to write the different types of animal poems in the book. (Guest Reviewer: Amanda Hoover)