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Never Forgotten. Patricia C. McKissack. Illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon. 2011. Random House. 48 pages.
Never Forgotten by Patricia C. McKissack won a 2012 Coretta Scott King Author Honor. It is a picture book for older readers, a collection of poems focused on the slavery experience from Africa to the Americas. While the book addresses, in a way, slavery as a whole, it is also a personal narrative in that it focuses on one young man--taken from his family, his community. The book has folklore elements to it as well, as several of the poems are narrated by wind, water, fire, etc.
I definitely liked the text more than the artwork, but that is just me. (Judging illustrations is so subjective--or it seems that way to me.) I liked the personal aspect to it--tracing the loss in his family, in his community. The always-wanting, always-missing, always-wondering aspect of it. This one is more a story about those left behind. So it is unique, in my opinion.
Read Never Forgotten
- If you're a fan of poetry
- If you're a fan of multicultural poetry
- If you're looking to read Coretta Scott King winners/honors
- If you're a fan of folklore
© 2012 Becky Laney of
Becky's Book Reviews
The Great Migration: Journey to the North. Eloise Greenfield. Illustrations by Jan Spivey Gilchrist. 2011. HarperCollins. 26 pages.
Between 1915 and 1930, more than a million African Americans left their homes in the South, the southern part of the United States, and moved to the North. This movement was named "the Great Migration." The Great Migration is a poetry book that won a 2012 Coretta Scott King Honor in the author category. What I liked best about this poetry book is the diversity of narrative voices. Greenfield tells the story of the Great Migration through a series of different voices--old, young, man, woman, boy, girl. Some find leaving bittersweet; others can't wait to start a new life. Some are anxious, hesitant. Others are exuberant and confident. All of the poems feel personal.
My favorite may be "IV. Question: Men and Women"
Will I make a good lifefor my family,for myself?The wheels are singing,"Yes, you will,you will, you will!"I hope they're right.I think they're right.I know they're right.We're going to havea great life. Got to try it.Going to do it. Going tomake it. No matter what.Read The Great Migration
- If you enjoy poetry written for children
- If you enjoy poetry with a historical subject
- If you're interested in this time period, 1915-1930
- If you are interested in African American history
© 2012 Becky Laney of
Becky's Book Reviews
Borrowed Names: Poems About Laura Ingalls Wilder, Madam C.J. Walker, Marie Curie. Jeannine Atkins. 2010. March 2010. Henry Holt. 224 pages.
I liked this one. It was strange, but in a good way. All three women--Laura Ingalls Wilder, Madam C.J. Walker, Marie Curie--were born in 1867; all three women were mothers. The poems are about these three women--their relationships with their daughters, their personal lives, their careers. What were these successful women really like? What kind of relationships did they have with their daughters?
Laura Ingalls Wilder was the only woman whose story I was familiar with. I did enjoy getting to know these other two women. All three women had very different different experiences, different hardships, different strengths and weaknesses.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Think Again. JonArno Lawson. Illustrated by Julie Morstad. 2010. Kids Can Press. 64 pages.
I really enjoyed this poetry book! I was actually surprised by how much I liked it. The jacket describes this one as a "collection of quietly beautiful and surprisingly humorous short poems" that "reveals first love's uncertainties, frustrations, and joys." I don't usually mention the jacket description of a book, but in this case, I think they said it much better than I ever could.
What did I like about these short poems? Well, I found them to be true, to feel authentic. I thought they were very good, very short observations of life, of love. Some poems are self-reflections.
I enjoyed so many of these poems: Thoughtless, Up For Grabs, Pleasant, The Heart, and Oh Star I Never Wished Upon.
Here are two about time. In fact, both are named Time.
Time
The past cannot be paid for
And the future can't be bought:
You've got the present moment and
That's really all you've got. (29)
Time
Time comes quick and raw, it can't be
Slowed or refined
It moves so fast because
it's leaving everything behind. (53)
© Becky Laney of
Becky's Book Reviews
Yolen, Jane. 2009. A Mirror To Nature: Poems About Reflection. Photographs by Jason Stemple. Wordsong.
A picture book of nature poems. Yolen has written twelve reflective poems and paired them with some incredible photographs taken by her son, Jason Stemple. Each poem also includes a side note about the animal subject. What kind of animals? Alligators, racoons, deer, snails, frogs, coyotes, and several different species of birds. This one could appeal to animal lovers, nature lovers, environmentalists, and poetry lovers.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Myers, Walter Dean. 2006. Jazz. Illustrated by Christopher Myers. Holiday House.
This week I'm in with a review of a poetry book/picture book entitled Jazz. I just love the cover. How about you? There's something so vital about it, so expressive. Which gives you just a glimpse of what the book has to offer readers. The book presents jazz as a living, vital, emotional experience. About as far from boring as you can get! The book is a collection of fifteen poems. And they're good. My personal favorite is "Jazz Vocal." A poem that is just perfect for Valentine's Day.
"Jazz Vocal"
by Walter Dean Myers
A sultry love song, sassy as a summer day,
goes dancing from my heart and fills my mind
with such sweet things to say,
Like I love you oh so much
and I tremble when you touch my hand.
Can you understand?
Or can't you really see
what your beauty does to me
and your every word to me is my command?
It's our song. Our love song.
Can you hear it just beginning
Or am I just imagining those precious sounds?
it's a warm night, and much to my delight
my heart beats like a cool jazz bass,
making a special place for us to follow
as we walk on the edges of a dream
or is that horn man painting the edges of a love moonbeam?
Are those chords the heart of reason
or is this just the silly season to fall in love?
The melody and beat are blending
to a happy-ever-ending for you and me.
It's a love song. A sultry love song. All right.
The book includes a glossary of jazz terms and a time line.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Holbrook, Sara and Allan Wolf. 2008. More Than Friends: Poems From Him and Her. (Releases in October 2008)
I really enjoyed this poetry collection about love and relationships. Tracing from the very beginning to the somewhat bittersweet end, the book traces the rise and fall of a relationship between two teens who started out as "just friends." I like the two perspectives. I liked examining love from all its angles or views. Some of the poems are sweet, some are funny. But I think all have a certain authenticity.
Here's just a glimpse of what the book has to offer.
What To Do When She Looks At You
(by Allan Wolf)
Become unglued
and crimson-hued?
Turn away,
afraid to stare?
Bury your face in your biology book?
Or return the look?
What do you do when she looks at you?
Shout her name
from atop your chair?
Flare your nostrils?
Pose and flex?
Bellow like a buffalo bull in love?
Yodel like a loin-cloth-clad Tarzan?
Or take her hand?
What do you do when she looks at you?
A hundred things I could have done.
A hundred words lay on my tongue.
A hundred pickup lines marched by--
I just said, "Hi."
What Do You Do When He Looks At You?
(by Sara Holbrook)
For sure, if he is looking here's the rule:
Stand tall, inhale and tummy-hold, then try
to sneak a peek but still maintain your cool.
Be subtle, private, ask your friends to spy.
Adjust your belt, fluff hair, and moisten teeth,
stall, turn your back, search purse, and check your phone.
Don't panic or betray your knees are weak.
Don't mope or look pathetic when alone.
Don't scratch your nose or pick or pull.
Don't be a tramp, but you should show some skin.
Don't wolf down food, pretend you're full.
Look interested, just not in him.
These rules are set in concrete. Don't ask why.
You have to follow them, OR . . . just say, "Hi."
At the bottom of each poem, the author will let you know the type of poem. For example, the second one--"What Do You Do When He Looks At You" is a sonnet. The first example, the one by Wolf, is free verse with refrain.
Some of the poems are paired together to give you specific his/her examples. Overall, I'd definitely recommend this one.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Ardelius, Gunnar. 2008. (November release). I Need You More Than I Love You And I Love You To Bits. Translated by Tara Chace. Frontstreet Books.
Not quite poetry, not quite a novel, I NEED YOU MORE THAN I LOVE YOU... is a verse novel of sorts about the joys and sorrows, ups and downs, of young love, of first love. Told from both the male and female perspective, it has a little bit of everything emotionally speaking. It does share quite a bit of the couple's intimate moments, and because of this 'adult nature' of the work, it may not be appropriate for younger teens. But for older teens, it has its rightful place.
Here is the first piece,
Her foot slides over and then back, cautiously
stroking the toes of his left foot. His head quivers
when he glances up and catches her gleaming
eyes, as wide as fie kronor coins. He blushes,
noting the soft tug at his heart.
And here is another a bit further on (p. 37)
My taste has changed. The love songs on the
radio have started describing how everything
really is. I'm not sure I can deal with being
happy, it feels like I'm made out of play dough.
I don't want to be in love like that, like all the
other boring people. Our love is different. It's
about us.
Anyway, it's a nice enough book. These two young lovers are ordinary folks who do ordinary things. They're in and out of love and confused at times. Sometimes they're fighting with their parents. Sometimes they're at odds with the world around them. Sometimes nothing seems to be going right. Sometimes it does.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Zimmer, Tracie Vaughn. 2008. 42 Miles.
What the jacket says: "Linked free verse poems combine with scrapbook-style illustrations to create the vivid portrait of a girl who is trying to find herself amid the pieces of her life."
Loved this one. Just loved it. JoEllen (Ellen to her city friends; Joey to her country friends) divides her time between her two parents. Since her parents' divorce, she spends part of her week in the city with her mom, and the rest of the week (or should I say the weekends) with her dad in the country. Living a separated life isn't easy. Her dad and mom not to mention her city friends and country friends all see her differently. Which identity is her real identity? Who is she really when she's not trying to be all things to all people?
Many young adult novels focus on identity. Teens and preteens coming of age, coming to term with who they are and what they want. 42 Miles is a great example of this. Here we have an intelligent young girl beginning to transition into young adulthood. Just beginning to define who she is and what she wants. There's always a fine line between trying to be who your parents what you to be and being true to yourself. JoEllen is just beginning to discover this. Trying to define what is important to her.
Tomorrow, for Poetry Friday, I'll be sharing one poem from 42 Miles.
Other reviews: Readingjunky's Reading Roost, Patchwork of Books,
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Engle, Margarita. 2008. The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom.
Set in the last half of the nineteenth century (1850-1900), The Surrender Tree traces the struggle of Cuba's freedom and independence movements. Told through multiple narrators (Rosa, Silvia, Jose, etc.), the poems are strong, vivid, and powerful. They capture the gritty hardships of a life lived on the run, in hiding. These freedom fighters and these nurses have a price on their head. They were especially hunted down by slavehunters.
When the slavehunter brings back
runaways he captures,
he receives seventeen silver pesos
per cimarron,
unless the runaway is dead.
Four pesos is the price of an ear,
shown as proof that the runaway slave
died fighting, resisting capture.
The sick and injured
are brought to us, to the women,
for healing.
When a runaway is well again,
he will either choose to go back to work
in the coffee groves and sugarcane fields,
or run away again
secretly, silently alone.
How much is life worth? How much is freedom worth?
Cuba has fought three wars for independence, and still she is not free. Her people have been rounded up in reconcentration camps, where there is always too little food and too much illness. Rosa knows how to heal sickness with medicines made from wild plants. But with a price on her head for helping the rebels, Rosa dares not go out in the open. Instead, she turns hidden caves into hospitals for those who know how to find her. Black, white, Cuban, Spanish--Rosa does her best for everyone, even Lieutenant Death, who has sworn to kill her. Yet who can heal a country so torn apart by war? In this history in verse, acclaimed poet Margarita Engle has created a lyrical yet powerful portrait of Cuba.The wounded are sacred.
We never leave them.
When everyone else
flees the battlefield,
nurses are the ones
who rush to carry
the wounded
to Rosa.
I am learning
how to stay
far too busy
for worries
about dying.
The Surrender Tree is well-written, powerful, and bold.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
By:
Paintgranny,
on 1/11/2008
Blog:
Middle of Nowhere
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I received an email a while back from someone asking how I get my watercolour effects. Specifically, the granulation. Difficult one, as I have been mucking about with paint ever since my old dad got me my first basic Reeves box, when I was about four. So it's kind of second nature, precocious though that may sound. I break the 'rules' about mixing different kinds of paint (I do, frequently - gouache and watercolour) and I sometimes use old, and often dried up paints, frequently getting bits of dust in the wash. But somehow granulation always occurs in my washes, even though I hadn't heard of the term until a few years ago when someone told me I was doing it.
The main thing is, I watch my washes hawkishly, like a chef minds his (or her) sauce. This painting already has already two flimsy and dried washes. They go down loose, like liquid tissue paper...
...and when it is finished to my satisfaction, I get it levelled (or I might prop it a little, to push the darker paint into the shadow area) and watch it dry. It has to dry evenly, and naturally. No hairdryer. Ever. The upper photo shows the evaporating, dulling wash in the bottom right corner. This is what I watch, to check it is not drying too hard into the wash, which might create a tide mark. If it is going too fast, I might tip the board, or put a bit more water in, to coax and blend it into the existing one. It's a matter of squinting sideways and judgement. Then acting quickly and confidently if action needs taking.
The granulation; basically a speckledy finish. And below, just to the side of the window, the pigment in danger of drying into a slight trough. If it is left it will create a darker line - so I tilt the board gently this way and that, to even it out.
After about 40 minutes of babysitting it, I popped down to make some tea, and returned to a minor hiccup - the dark area had dried unevenly, resulting in a nasty little blotch.
Somewhat late for surgery, but some careful tweaking just about sorted it. Luckily it's in the shadow area where I will be putting in some pencil work, but I don't loose too much sleep over little mishaps - it's all part of the process. You can't teach this and the most disappointing answer I give - in reply to most things, not just painting - is it takes time, trial and error, which results in experience. Making mistakes and waiting are sometimes the best way to learn. Putting the time in can seem boring - but I don't have a magic, instant solution, and it works for me.
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