Joyce Sidman's "This Is Just to Say Poems of Apology and Forgiveness"

1.   BIBLIOGRAPHY

Sidman, Joyce. 2007. This Is Just to Say Poems of Apology and Forgiveness. Ill. by Pamela Zagarenski. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN 978-0-618-61680-0

2.  PLOT SUMMARY

 In this book of poetry, Joyce Sidman, has compiled poems from “students,” inspired by the great Williams Carlos Williams’s poem, This Is Just to Say. There are two parts to the book, part one and part two,  part I is the Apologies section, part II is the Responses to the Apology Poems. The poems throughout the book are incredibly witty, funny, emotional and profoundly relevant to students. The poems express and capture the message in a kid-friendly format.

3.  CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The format and layout of the poems that Sidman wrote, were very visually appealing. The illustrations done by Pamela Zagarenski go hand in hand, and assist in telling the poems’ stories. The illustrations in the book are appropriate for the age demographic which would be elementary students. Zagarenski’s illustrations are colorful, childlike and theatrical and compliment the poems in a creative aspect.

The introduction of the book was done by a character from the “class” and was rich in background history as to how the book came to be and its purpose. The poems really do play of from Williams Carlos Williams’s poem, and its thematic coherency is seen and evident throughout the book; the Apologies and Responses sections work very well together.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

School Library Journal starred review: “Sidman’s ear is keen, capturing many voices. Her skill as a poet is accessible to young people is unmatched…”

Goodreads starred review: “In haiku, pantoums, two-part poems, snippets, and rhymes, Mrs. Merz’s class writes of crushes, overbearing parents, loving and losing pets, and more. Some poets are deeply sorry; some not at all some are forgiven; some are not. In each pair of poems a relationship, a connection, is revealed.”

5. CONNECTIONS

This Poetry Book can be used to introduce poetry, and students can use it as a foundation and guide on how to compose an apology poem, just like the great poets. The poems can have a thematic unit to make it more meaningful and can be displayed in the school’s library to promote Poetry!

Other engaging books with similar theme are:

Florian, Douglas. Comets, Stars, the Moon, and Mars: Space Poems and Paintings. ISBN 978-0152053727

Janeczko, Paul B. A Kick in the Head. An Everyday Guide to Poetic Forms. ISBN 978-0763606626

Patrick J. Lewis's "Skywriting: Poems to Fly"

1.   BIBLIOGRAPHY

Lewis, Patrick J. 2010. Skywriting: Poems to Fly. Ill. by Laszlo Kubinyi. Mankato, MN. Creative Editions. ISBN 978-1-56846-203-5

2.  PLOT SUMMARY

In his book of poetry, J. Patrick Lewis wrote with intricate detail and eloquent vocabulary, with the poems being thematically linked through the topic of flight. The book is filled with allusions to historical figures that were pioneers in the invention and journey of flying, and the people who built machines across the world to make the dream of flying a reality! The flight poems are extraordinarily well written with rich vocabulary and breathtaking illustrations. The poems are very captivating and descriptive, the illustrations align and help tell the story of each poem. One of the poems is a concrete poem, it offers a creative visual style that makes it even more alluring to the reader.

3.  CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The poems written by Lewis are displayed elegantly in a unison font, the only change for certain poems is the size, color of the font depending on the background or illustrations surrounding the poem, the exception being the shape for the concrete poem. Reading the thirteen poems about the innovation and pursuit of flying was extraordinarily insightful. The illustrations done by Laszlo Kubinyi epically and beautifully displayed the theme in a realistic manner.

The manner in which the book is put together is impressively and artistically well done. The book commences with the table of content, followed with the first poem that can be referenced as the founding father of the flight poems “The Flight of Icarus” followed by eleven more poems ending with the “Space Shuttle Columbia STS109” then the Endnotes which provide historical background in the information, and lastly the Timeline of Human Inventions. The poems are written with exceptional vocabulary and tell the individual flight stories that captivate the readers’ attention, along with illustrations that are artistically mystical.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Learning Magazine starred review: “Ever since people have walked, they have dreamed of flying. This book applauds the history of humankind’s attempts to realize that dream, from the ancient story of Icarus to the modern age of space travel. The poems memorialize different forms of flight throughout the years.”

Booklist starred review: “In this picture-book anthology of 13 poems, Lewis celebrates the dramatic adventure of flight, from the ancient Greek of Icarus to the Wright brothers’ story…”

5. CONNECTIONS

The thematic poetry book about flight can be very engaging and students can choose a certain flight invention as inspiration to further develop their own poems. Have students write a poem and illustrations with it and display it in a bulletin board to show their created works.

*Other engaging books sharing the same theme:

Brown, Margaret Wise. Away in My Airplane. ASIN B0147EZYNS eBook

Kent, Mariah. Superpowers: More Poems About Flying. ISBN 978-0615777245

Margarita Engle's "The Firefly Letters"

1.   BIBLIOGRAPHY

Engle, Margarita. 2010. The Firefly Letters A Suffragette’s Journey To Cuba. New York: Henry Holt and Company. ISBN 978-0-8050-9082-6

2.  PLOT SUMMARY

 Margarita Engle’s book of poetry is a mesmerizing novel in verse, from start to finish. The poems are told from the characters’ points of view, there are four characters, Fredrika the Swedish Woman writer, Elena the young wealthy girl whose parents are hosting Fredrika, Cecilia a native from Africa who was sold into slavery and is now a slave in Cuba for Elena’s family, and Beni who is Cecilia’s husband.  In the poems the characters narrate their position in life, their surroundings, hopes, dreams and stance on women’s rights and slavery; they are all centered on historical women’s rights pioneer Fredrika Bremer, and her three month journey to Cuba, which inspired this book of poems.

3.  CRITICAL ANALYSIS

There are seventy-four poems in this book, written by award-winning Poet, Margarita Engle, each poem is a captivating and fascinating as the next. The poems are narratives told each in of the characters points of view. Moreover, the fireflies are referenced throughout the book, they symbolize feelings of captivity, and entrapment, yet also represent freedom and the ability to carry hope even at the darkest of times. The theme of this poetry book is the promotion and illumination of women’s rights and slavery, its purpose to shed light on these injustices, specifically in Cuba.

The only illustrations are on the Book jacket that were done by Jacket Illustrations by Ana Juan. Jacket Design by Rich Deas. The front cover is a painting of a woman whose hair freely blows in the wind and in it are fireflies that seemed to be intertwined and weaved in her hair floating in it ever so majestically.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Pura Belpre Honor Book for Narrative: 2011.

Booklist starred review: “Readers will be caught by the compelling narrative voices.”

Goodreads starred review: “In this quietly powerful new book, award-winning poet Margarita Engle paints a portrait of early women’s rights pioneer Fredrika Bremer and the journey to Cuba that transformed her life.”

5. CONNECTIONS

With this verse novel, the lesson of women’s rights and slavery can be linked with a History class and vertically aligned with this theme and historical context.

Other engaging and informative books are:

Grimes, Nikki. A Girl Named Mister. ISBN 978-0310723134

Williams, Carol Lynch. Glimpse. ISBN 978-1416997313

Walter Dean Myers's "Here in Harlem poems in many voices"

1.      BIBLIOGRAPHY

Myers, Walter Dean. 2004. Here in Harlem poems in many voices. New York: Holiday House. ISBN 0-8234-1853-7

2.  PLOT SUMMARY

 In his book, Poet Walter Dean Myers does an eloquent job of giving a voice to the people of Harlem, throughout his fifty-four poems. The poems are skillfully written in verse and are full of voice and characterization, the different voices are representative of people from all walks of life, residents from Harlem, which adds more substance to the book. The poems are accompanied with black and white photographs that help place the reader in the unique setting that is Harlem.

3.      CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The poems in the book are in a unison font, the photographs are in black and white, aesthetically simple, yet effective. Myers wrote, “I have added photographs to the text because I love the images, not to match the poems. The images and the voices race through my mind in a sustained triumph of place and community.”

The book’s design and format is simplistic, yet poignant, the front cover of the book displays a photograph of Duke Ellington and two of his singers, in 1938 that captures the existential life of Harlem; it shows a glimpse of the beloved Harlem. The poems are written in verse and adequately evoke the spirits of the residents of Harlem. Myers brilliantly captured the life, atmosphere and heart of the illustrious Harlem!

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

School Library Journal starred review: “Myers’s skill with characterization and voice are apparent as he models Edgar Lee Masters’s Spoon River Anthology (Sagebrush, 1962) to bring Harlem to life for readers.”

Kirkus starred review: “In this Whitman-esque ode to time and the city, the “crazy quilt patterns” of Harlem are reflected in the voices of the neighborhoods “big time people and its struggling folk…”

5. CONNECTIONS

This book of poems can serve as a historical background piece, and used to celebrate African-American Poets, and displayed proudly in a book-display during Black History Month in the school library.

*Other engaging books written in verse are:

Myers, Walter Dean. Harlem: A Poem. ISBN 978-0590543408

Hughes, Langston. The Dream Keeper and other poems. ISBN 978-0679883470