By: David Elzey,
on 1/27/2008
by Judy Blume original Penguin edition 1972 Where's the struggle, and what's the resolution of that conflict? What does Peter want, exactly? Is Peter even the main character? Everything I learned last week in lectures and workshops is turned upside down! Grad school has ruined reading for me! Okay, I'm calm now. But it is an interesting, if serendipitous, choice for me at this time. These
By: Sylvia Vardell,
on 4/28/2007
Poet Barbara Juster Esbensen was born on April 28, 1925, in Madison Wisconsin. She won the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children for her body of work and the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award for her book Dance with Me (HarperCollins, 1995), among other recognitions. Her poetry collections are strong in imagery, fresh perspective and a deft use of language. Her focus on animals and nature is particularly appealing in such books as Echoes for the Eye: Poems to Celebrate Patterns in Nature (HarperCollins, 1996), Who Shrank My Grandmother's House? Poems of Discovery (HarperCollins, 1992), and Words with Wrinkled Knees (Crowell, 1986). Esbensen offers a resource for adults who want additional insight in teaching poetry effectively entitled A Celebration Of Bees: Helping Children Write Poetry (Holt, 1995). For just a taste of her work, here is one poem I particularly like:
Final edition In the index
under D I N O S A U R
we find only
the out-of-print
bones
Once they were
a many-volume set TRICERATOPS
and BRONTOSAURUS lived there
TYRANNOSAURUS REX roamed
among the footnotes
In a back room
a few large books
remain spines broken
and faded paper torn
A few legbones lie
scattered among the gluepots
beyond repair
D I N O S A U R the ancient
lizard word without
a publisher copyright
expired
From: Esbensen, Barbara. 1986. Words with Wrinkled Knees. New York: Crowell.
Esbensen’s book, Words with Wrinkled Knees, is a creative exploration of both the WORDS as well as ATTRIBUTES of animals and animal names. For example, she imagines the giraffe in the library with the phrases “this word/ munches on the leaves/ of books lined up” and portrays the dinosaur with “out-of-print/ bones.” These library connections are especially fun and suggest activities such as posting animal poems near the animal books, looking for other places to connect with new animal creations, and creating new animal wordplays such as acrostics, crossword puzzles, and word scrambles.
Picture credit: www.solarnavigator.net
Sylvia,
I absolutely love the poetry of Barbara Juster Esbensen. I think her book "Echoes for the Eye: Poems to Celebrate Patterns in Nature" is one of the finest poetry books ever written for children. I love her use of imagery and language in that book--and also in her book "Cold Stars and Fireflies." It's so sad that both of these books are now out of print.
You've done a wonderful job with your poetry postings during the month of April!
Elaine, Thanks again for stopping by and for your kind compliment. I've been following your postings of ORIGINAL poems, too-- very fun!
Sylvia