Splinters: A Book of Very Short Poems

This is a book of very short poems, most of them about 4 lines long. They're like splinters -- short and sharp. The poems are written by those wellknown for their work for children like Ogden Nash, Elizabeth Coatsworth, Walter de la Mare, Jane Yolen and Carl Sandburg. But the anthology also
provides a delightful introduction to the more sophisticated work of poets such as Osip Mandelstam, Emily Dickinson, ee cummings, A.E. Housman, and Ezra Pound. Thanks to the poems' brevity and Sue Heap's whimsical line drawings -- reminiscent of Stevie Smith -- these writers are rendered quite
accessible to younger readers.

Little Fish

The tiny fish enjoy themselves
in the sea.
Quick little splinters of life,
their little lives are fun to them
in the sea. -- D.H. Lawrence

This little gem of a book will make an ideal gift for child and adult alike.

MICHAEL HARRISON is a teacher, anthologist, and author who lives in England. His most recent books include The Curse of the Ring and, as co-editor, The Oxford Treasury of Children's Poems. SUE HEAP's illustrations have appeared in several Oxford books.

Grade 4-12-- This small book contains 103 short poems accented by child-like pen-and-ink drawings. The poems are loosely organized by diverse topics, including love, pets, war, and the seasons. The selections range from classic poems to those by contemporary children's poets. They come from the oral tradition, from sundials and park benches, and from poets of both East and West. Some are light-hearted, such as the three poems by Ogden Nash; others, like those of Stevie Smith and D. H. Lawrence, require that readers ponder darker meanings. Like David McCord's All Small (Little, 1986) and Paul Janeczko's Postcard Poems (Bradbury, 1979; o.p.), this collection invites readers to poetry through brief provocative poems, although its audience is broader and its content more diverse than either of those. This book is recommended for teachers and school and public librarians who use poems for display and to read aloud in conjunction with storytelling sessions, booktalks, and book discussions. Each poem can be used in a number of ways to introduce students of all ages to the sheer joy of the power in language. --Barbara Chatton, College of Education, University of Wyoming, Laramie
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