Wonderful Words: Poems About Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689835884 ISBN 13: 9780689835889

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2004

Synopsis

Come, words, come in your every color.
Whether we are sharing poems or secrets, acting onstage, or just telling jokes, the words we use are our best friends. Join acclaimed poet Lee Bennett Hopkins in this glorious collection celebrating words in speech, reading, language, and drama and how they influence our lives. Works by Emily Dickinson, Eve Merriam, and Nikki Grimes make whispers, metaphors, and dreams come alive, while Karen Barbour's illustrations interpret the magic of language with vivid hues. This is a collection sure to inspire wordsmiths of all ages, over and over. And just maybe there's a poet who didn't know it in you!

About this title

About the Author

LEE BENNETT HOPKINS is a distinguished poet, writer, and anthologist whose poetry collections include the highly acclaimed Hand in Hand: An American History Through Poetry, illustrated by Peter Fiore, and My America: A Poetry Atlas of the United States, and America at War, both illustrated by Stephen Alcorn. Mr. Hopkins’s numerous awards include the University of Southern Mississippi Medallion for “lasting contributions to children’s literature” and both the Christopher Award and a Golden Kite Honor for his verse novel Been to Yesterdays: Poems of a Life. He lives in Cape Coral, Florida.

Reviews

Grade 1-5--This colorfully illustrated compilation presents 15 poems that show the power of words. The authors include Eve Merriam, Pat Mora, David McCord, Nikki Grimes, and Carl Sandburg. All of the selections are excellent, and provide examples of different types of poetry. The gouache illustrations are unusual, combining folk art with more abstract images. The colors are bold and bright, and used in unique and unexpected ways (e.g., skin is blue, palm trees are pink). The simple page designs nicely incorporate the text into each picture. The paintings reflect the content and messages of the poems they accompany, and will enhance their meaning. With some adult encouragement, this book would be appealing to most children, and could be used for poetry lessons.--Corrina Austin, Locke's Public School, St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada
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Gr. 3-6. Barbour's bright, rhythmic double-page-spread paintings are gorgeous, packed with images in vivid color and collage, but they nearly overwhelm the 15 short poems in this picture-book anthology about the joy of language. The poems have a lot to say, and they do so with lyricism and fun. David McCord's "How to Say a Long Hard Word" and Pat Mora's "Words Free as Confetti" show and tell how sound is part of sense. Karla Kuskin talks about writing in "Finding a Poem" ("Dig deep in you. Keep everything you find"). Tom Robert Shields celebrates reading ("I am the book / You are needing"). The collection will work best if an adult reads the poems aloud, giving listeners an opportunity to imagine all the places the words may take them; then children can look at the pictures and see the great connections Barbour has made. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0689835884
• ISBN 13: 9780689835889
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Barbour Karen
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32