April is ‘Poetic’ in its Springtime Beauty.
Celebrate the Joy of Poetry!
by Selene S. Vasquez
PICTURE BOOK: AGES 5 THRU 8
The Scrubbly-Bubbly Car Wash by Irene O’Garden. Illustrated by Cynthia Jabar. (Harper Collins, 32 pp., $15.99)
An effervescent picture book filled with tongue twisting alliteration and bouncy rhymes: “Soapy floppy brushes mop/ from our tires to the top.” Children describe the frothy sights and sounds of a car wash.
POETRY: AGES 5 THRU 10
Dear World ; by Takayo Noda. ; (Dial, 32 pp., $16.99)
Lyrical verses praise the joys and wonders in the world. Each selection begins as a letter...”dear car...you will not need wheels/ if you have wings./ I wish you wings/ in your dream tonight.” Colorful cut-paper and watercolor collages compliment the whimsical child-like ruminations.
POETRY: AGES 8 THRU 12
Casey at the Bat: A Ballad of the Republic Sung in the Year 1888 ; by Ernest Thayer. Illustrated by C.F. Payne. (CIP, 32 pp., $16.95).
The “mighty Casey” with smoke coming out of his ears and gums glistening, steps up to the plate in this classic baseball poem. Caricatures rendered in a mixture of acrylics, watercolors and colored pencils. Notes about the author included.
Paul Revere’s Ride: The Landlord’s Tale by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. llustrated by Charles Santore. (Harper Collins, 32 pp., $16.99). A poem told as Longfellow truly wrote it - regarding 19th century gentlemen gathered around a cozy parlor fire 100 years after Revere’s historic ride and recounting the details of that fateful night. Somber but beautiful blue, green and brown tones depict the attempted secret attack in the dark of the night.#
Selene S. Vasquez is a media specialist at Orange Brook Elementary School in Hollywood, Florida. She is formerly a librarian for the New York Public Library.
