The TENTH Annual Poetry Round Up at TLA

It's that time again-- time for the annual conference of the Texas Library Association, one of my favorite events of the year. This time we're heading to San Antonio-- always a fun convention city. The weather should be sunny and warm and I'll be hosting.... drum roll.... the TENTH annual Poetry Round Up on Friday, April 11. TEN YEARS! I can't believe a whole decade has flown by! We've now showcased 57 poets over the years-- a veritable "Who's Who" of poets who write for young people:

Adoff, Jaime
Alexander, Kwame
Appelt, Kathi
Bagert, Brod 
Brown, Calef 
Bryant, Jen
Bulion, Leslie
Crunk, Tony
Cyrus, Kurt
Dotlich, Rebecca Kai
Durango, Julia
Engle, Margarita
Florian, Douglas 
Franco, Betsy
Frank, John
Frost, Helen
George, Kristine O’Connell
Graham, Joan Bransfield
Grimes, Nikki 
Harper, Charise Mericle
Havill, Juanita
Heard, Georgia
Hemphill, Stephanie
Herrera, Juan Felipe 
Hopkins, Lee Bennett
Jensen, Dana
Katz, Alan
Kehoe, Stasia
Lewis, J. Patrick
McCall, Guadalupe Garcia 
McLaughlin, Timothy
Mora, Pat 
Mordhorst, Heidi Zingerline
Myers, Walter Dean
Ode, Eric
Park, Linda Sue Park
Pearson, Susan
Rex, Adam
Richey, Will
Salas, Laura Purdie
Salinger, Michael
Sidman, Joyce 
Singer, Marilyn 
Smith, Hope Anita
Spinelli, Eileen
Tafolla, Carmen
Troupe, Quincy
VanDerwater, Amy Ludwig
Waters, Charles
Weatherford, Carole Boston
Weinstock, Robert
Weston, Robert Paul
Wheeler, Lisa
Wilson, Karma
Wong, Janet 
Yolen, Jane
Zimmer, Tracie Vaughn 

This year, our line-up features: 

Kwame Alexander

Margarita Engle

Joan BransfieldGraham

Nikki Grimes

Eric Ode

Joyce Sidman

Carmen Tafolla

Karma Wilson

Janet Wong

I can't wait to hear them all!

THANK YOU to all the poets who have participated over the years and to our wonderful audience who attends year after year. Welcome, newbies, too. If you've never attended, this is the year. We'll have handouts, book guides, treats, and tons of book door prizes! Special thanks to these publishers and their wonderful representatives for bringing the poets to TLA: Penguin Books for Young Readers and Sara Ortiz; Boyds Mills Press and Kerry McManus; Simon & Schuster and Venessa Carson and Michelle Fadlalla; Wings Press and Bryce Milligan; Lisa Di Sarro and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; Pelican Publishing; Pomelo Books. 

Each poet will be reading from her/his works-- and there is nothing quite like hearing the poems read by their creators. Once again, I'll try to capture a few moments on video and post those later this spring. 

Meanwhile, go look for the wonderful works by these lovely writers.

SELECTED BOOKS BY 2014 ROUND UP POETS

Alexander, Kwame. 2014. The Crossover. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Engle, Margaret. 2006. The Poet Slave of Cuba. Henry Holt.

Engle, Margarita. 2008. The Surrender Tree. Henry Holt.

Engle, Margarita. 2009. Tropical Secrets: Holocaust Refugees in Cuba. Henry Holt.

Engle, Margarita. 2010. The Firefly Letters; A Suffragette's Journey to Cuba. Henry Holt.

Engle, Margarita. 2011. Hurricane Dancers; The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck. Henry Holt.

Engle, Margarita. 2012. The Wild Book. Houghton Mifflin.

Engle, Margarita. 2013. Mountain Dog. Henry Holt.

Engle, Margarita. 2014. Silver People: Voices from the Panama Canal. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Engle, Margarita. 2014. Tiny Rabbit's Big Wish.  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Graham, Joan Bransfield. 1994. Splish Splash. Houghton Mifflin.

Graham, Joan Bransfield. 1999. Flicker Flash. Houghton Mifflin.

Graham, Joan Bransfield. 2014. The Poem That Will Not End. Two Lions.

Grimes, Nikki. 1994. Meet Danitra Brown. Lothrop, Lee & Shepard.

Grimes, Nikki. 1998. A Dime a Dozen. Dial.

Grimes, Nikki. 1998. Jazmin’s Notebook. Dial.

Grimes, Nikki. 1999. Hopscotch Love: A Family Treasury of Love Poems. Lothrop, Lee & Shepard.

Grimes, Nikki. 1999. My Man Blue: Poems. Dial.

Grimes, Nikki. 2001. A Pocketful of Poems. Clarion.

Grimes, Nikki. 2002. Bronx Masquerade. Dial.

Grimes, Nikki. 2004. What is Goodbye? Jump at the Sun/Hyperion.

Grimes, Nikki. 2005. Danitra Brown, Class Clown. Lothrop, Lee & Shepard.

Grimes, Nikki. 2005. Dark Sons. Hyperion.

Grimes, Nikki. 2006. Thanks a Million. Amistad.

Grimes, Nikki. 2007. When Gorilla Goes Walking. Orchard.

Grimes, Nikki. 2011. Planet Middle School. Bloomsbury.

Grimes, Nikki. 2013. Words with Wings. Wordsong/Boyds Mills Press.

Grimes, Nikki. 2014. Poems in the Attic.  Lee & Low. 

Ode, Eric. 2007. Tall Tales of the Wild West: A Humorous Collection of Cowboy Poems & Songs. Meadowbrook.

Ode, Eric. 2012. Dan, the Taxi Man. Kane/Miller.

Ode, Eric. 2012. When You're a Pirate Dog and Other Pirate Poems. Pelican.

Ode, Eric. 2013. Sea Star Wishes: Poems from the Coast. Sasquatch Books/Random House.  

Sidman, Joyce. 2002. Eureka! Poems about Inventors. Millbrook.

Sidman, Joyce. 2003. The World According to Dog: Poems and Teen Voices. Houghton Mifflin.

Sidman, Joyce. 2005. Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems. Houghton Mifflin.

Sidman, Joyce. 2006. Butterfly Eyes and Other Secrets of the Meadow. Houghton Mifflin.

Sidman, Joyce. 2006. Meow Ruff: A Story in Concrete Poetry. Houghton Mifflin.

Sidman, Joyce. 2007. This is Just to Say: Poems of Apology and Forgiveness. Houghton Mifflin.

Sidman, Joyce. 2009. Red Sings From Treetops; A Year in Colors. Houghton Mifflin.

Sidman, Joyce. 2010. Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night. Houghton Mifflin.

Sidman, Joyce. 2010. Ubiquitous: Celebrating Nature’s Survivors. Houghton Mifflin.

Sidman, Joyce. 2013. What the Heart Knows: Chants, Charms & Blessings. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Sidman, Joyce. 2014. Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Tafolla, Carmen. 2008. That's Not Fair! / No Es Justo!: Emma Tenayuca's Struggle for Justice. Wings Press.

Tafolla, Carmen. 2009. What Can You Do With a Paleta? Tricycle Press.

Tafolla, Carmen. 2010. Fiesta Babies. Tricycle Press.

Tafolla, Carmen. 2012. Rebozos. Wings Press.

Wilson, Karma. 2009. What's the Weather Inside? Simon & Schuster.

Wilson, Karma. 2014. Outside the Box. Ill. by Diane Goode. Margaret K. McElderry.

Wong, Janet S. 1994. Good Luck Gold and Other Poems. Margaret K. McElderry.

Wong, Janet S. 1996. A Suitcase of Seaweed, and Other Poems. Booksurge.

Wong, Janet S. 1999. Behind the Wheel:  Poems about Driving. McElderry.

Wong, Janet S. 1999. The Rainbow Hand: Poems about Mothers and Children. McElderry.

Wong, Janet S. 2000. Night Garden:  Poems from the World of Dreams. McElderry

Wong, Janet S. 2003. Knock on Wood: Poems about Superstitions. McElderry.

Wong, Janet S. 2003. Minn and Jake. Farrar, Straus & Giroux.

Wong, Janet S. 2007. Twist: Yoga Poems. McElderry.

Wong, Janet. 2008. Minn and Jake’s Almost Terrible Summer. Farrar, Straus & Giroux.

Wong, Janet. 2011. Once Upon A Tiger: New Beginnings for Endangered Animals. OnceUponaTiger.com.

Wong, Janet. 2012. Declaration of Interdependence: Poems for an Election Year. PoetrySuitcase.

I am so gratified that TLA continues to value this session and keep it on the conference program. Special thanks to the Children's Round Table for sponsoring this popular presentation. Having a poetry showcase during April, National Poetry Month is a fantastic treat!

Downloadable NPM poster available here:
http://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/98

Speaking of National Poetry Month, once again I'm going to try to post daily during April. This year, I'll be showcasing poem movies created by my wonderful graduate students-- teachers and librarians enrolled in my spring course on poetry for children and young adults. They've created some clever, engaging, and evocative mini-movies-- each featuring a single poem from my latest collaboration, The Poetry Friday Anthology FOR SCIENCE with a wide variety of poets and poems highlighted. They've used kids, nature photographs, music, and even LEGOs to make one-minute videos that bring each poem to life! Come back every day in April to check them out. 

Meanwhile, head on over to A Year of Reading, the fabulous coordinator of all our weekly Poetry Friday celebrations to see what's up around the Web!