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I am by no means a poetry scholar, and as time goes on,  I become more and more okay with that fact. I like to read poetry, but I don’t like to be told what it means, or asked to analyze it. I like to just let the words drop down on me, and then I take away whatever little snippets mean something to me and disregard the rest. Normally, when I look at a collection of poems, I skip the ones that don’t appeal to me, and read only the ones that look interesting. But I did read The Tree That Time Built all the way through, and while I don’t really think it was for me, I can appreciate the work that went into it.

Mary Ann Hoberman, the U.S. Children’s Poet Laureate from 2008 to 2010, and Linda Winston compiled a series of poems by a whole spectrum of poets, dubbing it “a celebration of nature, science, and imagination.” Among the authors whose works appear in the book are Sylvia Plath, Christina Rossetti, Vachel Lindsay, Ogden Nash, Carl Sandburg, Walt Whitman, Jack Prelutsky, Eve Merriam, and Douglas Florian. The book is accompanied by a CD where many of  these poets read their own works. Mary Ann Hoberman also reads her own poetry, and Linda Winston reads a variety of poems herself.

There are many components to the book, which is probably what impressed me the most. Many of the poems are accompanied by footnotes that discuss both the content and the form of the poem. There is also a glossary of scientific terms, as well as a brief biography of every poet at the back of the book. As an information resource, this book leaves absolutely nothing to be desired. It’s very, very well done. The only problem I had was that many of the poems felt too dense and difficult for me, and I didn’t see them as particularly child-friendly. I much prefer silly and playful children’s poetry, and I can’t imagine this being a book kids read for pleasure like they might with a Douglas Florian  or Jack Prelutsky book. I can imagine, though, that nature lovers would enjoy these poems a lot more than  I did, and  that teachers could mine this book for some wonderful lessons that incorporate science and literature.

I will say, though, that I loved hearing Jack Prelutsky’s voice. He even sounds like a poet! Ogden Nash also has a great voice, and Mary Ann Hoberman’s rhythms are spot-on and that much more enjoyable when she reads them aloud. Definitely check this out if you are a fan of a wide variety of poetry, and share it with kids who aspire to be poets, as well as those readers  who like to be challenged.

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Arthur's Nose, the first book in Marc Brown's Arthur series, was published in 1976. The Arthur appearing in that story was very obviously an aardvark, with a long, drooping nose and a droopy disposition to match. 35 years later, Arthur is someone else entirely - a noseless, bespectacled, everykid who resembles neither an aardvark nor any other actual creature, but who has a much more agreeable personality, and can be trusted to guide kids through the many difficulties associated with growing up.

I hadn't read any Arthur books in a long time - probably not since long before the series became a television show - so I decided to read one title from each of the three series my library has on its shelves.

I started with a picture book, and read Arthur's First Sleepover, which is the 20th Arthur adventure and was originally published in September 1996. It was also adapted as part of Episode 30 in Season 1 of the television show, which first aired on June 2, 1997. 

Arthur invites his friends Buster and the Brain to sleep over in the tent in his backyard. The morning before the sleepover, Arthur's father is reading "The National Requirer" at breakfast. One of the articles in the tabloid is about spaceships. Always ready to torture her brother, DW starts trying to convince the boys that aliens will disturb their sleepover. When night falls, and the boys settle into their tent, DW even tries to scare them by making alien lights  with her flashlight. They are frightened only momentarily; then they recover and exact their revenge using a scary mask. In between all the alien talk, kids also get to see the fun of a sleepover, and enjoy the excitement of staying up late, even after the parents say it's time to sleep.


The second book I read was an easy reader called Arthur's Hiccups, which was written by Janet Schulman, not Marc Brown, and published in 2001. The book includes a sheet of stickers for kids to use in telling their own Arthur stories.

When Arthur develops the hiccups, everyone has a suggestion for getting rid of them. The Brain says that at least one person has died from hiccups in the past, and instructs Arthur to stand on his head until they go away. Buster thinks a good joke will take care of them, and Muffy and Francine recommend lollipops licked upside down. DW helps not at all by teasing her brother, but ultimately it is she who solves the problem by hiding under the bed and scaring Arthur. Unfortunately for her, she then ends up with hiccups herself. This is a perfect easy reader: it deals with a universal experience, has a definite structure, and comes full circle with a humorous ending.


Finally, I tried an Arthur chapter book, the 10th, entitled Who's In Love with Arthur? which was written by Stephen Krensky and published in 1998. The book is b

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