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Playing catch up

I have been caught up the world of trying to catch up, which means sorting out the studio, general sorting and tidying and gasp! going outside. Sunshine, trees, bike riding and library visiting, all quite lovely.

I have been sewing again and should have something to show by the end of the week. Been having great fun trying to re-create the wolf that I made last year, but this time in a brown, tweedy wool/silk mix. Great fabric to work with and I am hoping that it will have lots of raggedy edges to make him look the scoundrel that he is.Here is a reminder of how he looked:


I am working on a new Little Red also. I think she will be bigger and have jointed arms and legs like ol' wolfie there.

Also wanted to show you this. My husband has many talents and seems to have developed a new one... P.J.Bracegirdle

Talk to you again soon peeps!

Hello my dears, it has been a while. Things have been a bit of a whirlwind around here, not leaving much time for this little old blog.

I have lots to share when I have a bit more time but couldn't wait to show you this, the cover of my husband's first book Fiendish Deeds:

cover illustration by Nicoletta Ceccoli

Isn't it wonderful? Nicoletta Ceccoli is so talented and has captured the characters of the story perfectly. Fiendish Deeds will be published by McElderry Books Summer 2008. If you are a Facebook member, you can go to Paul's facebook author page and read the first chapter: P.J. Bracegirdle Just scroll down to posted items, and you should see the link there.

Also, if you are in Toronto, an exhibition of Nicoletta Ceccoli's work has just opened at: Magic Pony

I hope everyone is doing well. I still peek in at all of your blogs to keep up with what you are up to. Hopefully I can find some time soon to tell you of my toings and froings!

In honor of Young People’s Poetry Week, I thought it might be appropriate to feature some poetry that is written BY children. In general, my goal in sharing poetry with children is to focus on reading, performing, and discussing it, rather than on writing it; on the experience of poetry rather than the production of it. However, many children naturally experiment with writing poetry, particularly when they are immersed in reading and talking about it. (But I continue to be frustrated by the converse: children expected to WRITE poetry, when they’ve had very little experience reading or listening to it.) Sharing poetry BY kids can be appealing because it touches adults with the voices and experiences of our youngest, and inspires children who begin to think of themselves as possible creators of poetry. Here’s one of my personal favorites, gathered and published by poet Sanford Lyne in Ten-Second Rainshowers:

Forever and a Day
By Heather Lachman
Grade 4

I want to go home.
The day is long.
It has been long ever since
I woke up.

From Lyne, Sandford, comp. 1996. Ten-Second Rainshowers: Poems by Young People. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Several poets who have worked in schools, libraries, and with other youth projects have gathered and edited collections of poetry written by children of all ages. Collections such as Salting the Ocean edited by Naomi Shihab Nye (Greenwillow, 2000) or Ten-Second Rain Showers (Simon & Schuster, 1996) and Soft Hay Will Catch You (Simon & Schuster, 2004) both edited by Sanford Lyne, and for young adults, Paint Me Like I Am: Teen Poems from WritersCorps by Bill Aguado (HarperTeen, 2003) and Things I Have to Tell You: Poems and Writing by Teenage Girls and You Hear Me? Poems and Writing by Teenage Boys (both Candlewick, 2001) collected by Betsy Franco are all beautiful books full of unsentimental and authentic young voices. And for a more humorous look at poetry writing, consider Australian author Gary Crew’s mock journal, Troy Thompson’s Excellent Peotry [sic] Book (Kane/Miller, 2003) which LOOKS like a collection of very personal poems in a child’s own handwriting (although it’s created by an adult). For children who aspire to be writers or who may find personal poetry writing a helpful release, these books are an invitation to see oneself as a writer, to see children as capable of poetic expression, too.

Picture credit: www.pierce.ctc.edu

Today marks the beginning of Young People’s Poetry Week (April 16-22), the most important week of the year, of course (when it comes to poetry for children)! Just about ten years ago the Academy of American Poets initiated the observance of National Poetry Month to celebrate poetry and its place in American culture. Since then, the poetry “movement” has continued to gain momentum with the emergence of Young People’s Poetry Week in 1999 sponsored by the Children’s Book Council, a focus on poetry slams as the centerpiece for Teen Read Week in 2003 sponsored by the American Library Association, and the inauguration of the Poetry Blast in 2004 led by the Association for Library Service to Children, a concert of children’s poets held at the annual conferences of ALA and the International Reading Association. (I’ve brought that same “concert” idea to the Texas Library Association conference and was proud to lead the third annual poetry “round up” just last Friday in San Antonio featuring Jaime Adoff, Tony Crunk, Rebecca Kai Dotlich, Charise Mericle Harper, Heidi Zingerline Mordhorst, and Eileen Spinelli.)

The Children's Book Council, in collaboration with the American Academy of Poets and the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, sponsors Young People's Poetry Week during the third week of April, providing a variety of wonderful resources to assist with programming and celebrations. You’ll find a list of new poetry titles, a downloadable bookmark, crossword puzzles, interviews with poets, and articles on sharing poetry written by Carole Fiore, Lester Laminack, and yours truly.

So, happy YPPW to you and yours. Here’s a poem to open the door to poetry for the young people in your life!

The Poem as a Door
by Eve Merriam

A door
is never
either/or.
A door
is always
more.

You cannot skip over,
you cannot crawl under;
walk through the wood,
it splits asunder.

If you expect it to be bolted,
it will be.

There is only one opening:
yourself as the key.

With a sigh of happiness
you pass through
to find on the other side
someone with a sigh of happiness
welcoming you.

from The Singing Green (HarperCollins, 1992)

Invite children to share their favorite poems and post them on the door for others to enjoy as they come and go all week long!

Picture credit: downtheroad.org