poetry friday

[book birthday+ giveaway] Chatting with Charles Ghigna about The Father Goose Treasury of Poetry

~ jama ~ 54 Comments

We’re excited and honored that beloved Alabama poet, author, and intrepid tree house dweller Charles Ghigna is here to tell us all about The Father Goose Treasury of Poetry (Schiffer Kids, 2023), which is officially out today!!!

This 101-poem anthology is a thing of inimitable beauty, magic and wonder. Poems are presented in seven sections: Home, Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall, Animals, and Poetry. All are graced with Sara Brezzi’s evocative, sometimes whimsical mixed media illustrations – a perfect complement to Ghigna’s lovingly crafted verses.

The treasury has a classic feel and belongs on all library, classroom, and home shelves to be savored and shared again and again. It showcases Ghigna’s love of the natural world, his astute powers of observation, and his uncanny ability to capture small fleeting moments that might otherwise be missed.

Kids will delight in the stunning images, wide range of emotions, effortless lyricism and gentle humor. We’re reminded of fresh ways to see the world through a child’s eyes, even learning how chickens really feel about chicken soup, and whether pigs resent barbecue. Irresistible, right?

Let’s find out more from Father Goose himself. Honk!

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[review + recipes] A Charlotte Brontë Birthday

~ jama ~ 35 Comments

“I am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.” ~ Charlotte Brontë (Jane Eyre, 1847).

Today we’re celebrating Charlotte Brontë’s 207th birthday with a fabulous picture book and two versions of a scrummy Yorkshire treat. 🙂

Wonder if she could ever have imagined that over a century after publishing the first book of Brontë poems, generations of readers all over the world would still be studying, sharing and marveling at all she and her sisters had written?

As enjoyable and enduring as their books are, a large part of what continues to intrigue Brontë fans is the fascinating story of their all-too-brief lives in early 19th century Yorkshire. 

In The Brontës: Children of the Moors (Franklin Watts, 2016), award winning nonfiction picture book team Mick Manning and Brita Granström present an engaging, informative, charmingly illustrated account of Brontë family milestones from their early childhood days in Haworth, to their short stints as teachers and governesses, to their accomplishments as authors and poets.

Manning and Granström’s kid friendly format consists of three components: a main text narrated by Charlotte, scenes dramatized with characters conversing in speech bubbles, and Charlotte’s sidenotes brimming with interesting bits and bobs that expand on the main text.

This approach packs a lot of information into each double page spread; Charlotte’s voice is intimate and accessible and younger readers can opt to follow the story via the pictures.

There’s also a unique spin: Mick Manning actually grew up in the village of Haworth and played a shepherd in the 1967 BBC2 “Wuthering Heights” series when he was just 8. As the book opens, he recounts how he dozed off while waiting for his turn on camera, only to have a lady “in old fashioned clothes” tell him a story he’d never forget upon awakening. 

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[leggy review] Animals in Pants by Suzy Levinson and Kristen & Kevin Howdeshell

~ jama ~ 20 Comments

What? You’ve never seen animals in pants?!? 

Slip into your sweats and get ready for a good giggle with the likes of pelicans in pedal pushers, polar bears in snow pants, and yaks in slacks. 🙂

These are just a few of the curiously clad critters in this hilarious new picture book, Animals in Pants by Suzy Levinson and Kristen & Kevin Howdeshell (Cameron Kids, 2023). 

Debut author Levinson has fashioned 23 pithy, playfully perky poems, tailor-made for discerning munchkins who like their animals tastefully trousered. After all, there’s nothing like a rollicking pants parade to get a leg up on the latest trends. 

Levinson’s menagerie includes both domestic and wild animals thriving in a variety of habitats (farm, suburb, range, ocean, jungle, North and South Poles). It’s uncanny how she’s able to capture each animal’s essence in such a short rhyme, delighting the reader with an element of surprise and brilliant comic timing. 

Of course a cat with an attitude would wear custom-made tiger-striped velour pants, a tracksuit would be the attire of choice for squirrels showing off their acrobatic skills, and monkeys would prefer cargo pants (gotta have those pockets to carry bananas). 🙂

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love me some hot cross buns

~ jama ~ 36 Comments

Happy Good Friday!

What are you doing today? Will you, perchance, be wandering city streets with your basket or cart peddling freshly baked hot cross buns? If so, then it’s likely you’ll be singing this classic rhyme as you go:

Hot Cross Buns,
Hot cross buns;
One a penny, two a penny,
Hot Cross Buns.
If your daughter don't like them,
Give them to your sons;
One a penny, two a penny,
Hot Cross Buns.

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Walter Crane (The Baby’s Bouquet, 1878).

I must say you’re in excellent voice. You’d fit right in with 18th century London hawkers and their “hot cross buns” street cry in the days leading up to Easter. From street cry to nursery rhyme to an aid in musical education, “Hot Cross Buns” is now a cherished part of our childhood lexicons.

~ from The Illustrated London News (1861).

Until the 18th century these yeast-risen beauties were called “Cross Buns” or “Good Friday Buns.” The first written record of the name “Hot Cross Buns” was in a popular rhyme published in Poor Robin’s Almanack (1733):

Good Friday comes this month -- the old woman runs
With one or two a-penny hot cross buns,
Whose virtue is, if you believe what's said,
They'll not grow mouldy like the common bread.
~ from an 1860s book of nursery rhymes printed in London.
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2023 National Poetry Month Kidlitosphere Events Roundup

~ jama ~ 49 Comments

Happy April and Happy National Poetry Month!

It’s time once again to read, write, share, and simply indulge your love for poetry in every way. I’m happy to be back rounding everyone up this year and look forward to checking in with all of you throughout April.

New to National Poetry Month and wondering about ways to celebrate? Visit the NPM webpage at The Academy of American Poets (poets.org) for a cool list of activities, initiatives and resources. You can learn about Poem in Your Pocket Day (April 27), sign up for Poem-a-Day to receive poems in your inbox, and review 30 Ways to Celebrate NPM online, at home, in the classroom, or at readings/events near you. Do as much, or as little, as you please. Just enjoy!

The 2023 poster was designed by Marc Brown, creator of the popular Arthur book and PBS television series. The artwork incorporates an excerpted line from the poem “Carrying” by U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón. Brown was selected by Scholastic—the global children’s publishing, education, and media company—to create the artwork for this year’s poster as part of a new National Poetry Month initiative between the publisher and the Academy of American Poets. Request a free copy or download a PDF of the poster here.

Now, here’s a list of what some kidlit bloggers are doing. If you’re also celebrating Poetry Month with a special project or blog event, or know of anyone else who is, please leave a comment here or email me: readermail (at) jamakimrattigan (dot) com, so I can add the information to this Roundup. Thanks, and have a beautiful, inspiring, uplifting, productive, and memorable April!

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