Sing a Song of People

Lenski, Lois; Laroche, Giles

ISBN 10: 0316520748 ISBN 13: 9780316520744

Publisher: Little Brown & Co, 1987

Synopsis

Depicts the pleasures of city life, people alone and in crowds, smiling and hurrying, on the sidewalk, bus, and subway

About this title

From School Library Journal:

PreSchool-Grade 1 Boston kids may enjoy playing ``spot the landmark'' on these pages, but out-of-towners will be harder put to find enduring interest here. Lenski's often-anthologized poem is pedestrianeven flat-footed. There is no appreciable logic or progression to the observations. If anything, the ``song of people'' is sung to a tune of alienation: ``people saying nothing,'' ``walking singly,'' in meaningless motion, ``who just hurry/ And never look at you!'' The final page proposes that we ``sing of city people/ You see but never know!'' Laroche's cut-paper constructions counterbalance this urban anomie with their bright colors and satisfying three-dimensional textures. The artist has valiantly tried to provide both narrative and positive emotion by introducing a spurious plot: a boy and his dog are separated, and, after several near-misses, reunited. The pictures are absorbing, but they can't make this dissonant song into a melody. Patricia Dooley, formerly at Drexel University, Philadelphia
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Publishers Weekly:

Glorious" illustrations constructed of paper "celebrate" this poem about a boy and his dog rediscovering life in the city, said PW. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Little Brown & Co
• Publication date: 1987
• ISBN 10: 0316520748
• ISBN 13: 9780316520744
• Binding: Library Binding
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32