TLA poet J. Patrick Lewis: The Underwear Salesman

I’ve been trying to get J. Patrick Lewis to Texas and the TLA conference for years and it finally happened! Pat was on our fantastic poetry panel on Thursday and did a terrific job sharing his amazing range of poetry. He was funny, ironic, informative, inviting. He read from several of his FIVE new books, as well as from upcoming collections like the hysterical epitaph poem anthology he’s doing with Jane Yolen.

Today I’d like to feature one of his new 2009 poetry collections, sure to be a kid-pleaser: The Underwear Salesman, the flipside to Tracie Vaughn Zimmer’s book, Steady Hands, that I wrote about yesterday. You gotta love a poetry book with “underwear” in the title and I counted 48 separate profession poems in Pat’s new underwear book (plus an opening and closing poem) that range from showcasing the “Paleontologist” and “Gymnast” to the “Cuckoo-Clock Repairman” and “Bubble Bath Tester.”

The poetic forms are also very varied and skip and hop from the extremely clever and punny to the quietly thoughtful and poignant—all with a natural sweep and swing. The illustrations by Serge Bloch are a fun complement with a mix of loose and jangly cartoons sketches blended with textured and googly-eyed collages. Is there a librarian poem? Of course there is! (And the publishers created a lovely bookmark for the TLA conference featuring this poem—thanks, Michelle!)

Librarian
by J. Patrick Lewis

No one has more fun than I!
I’ve met Harriet the Spy,
Ferdinand the Bull, and Pooh.
(Eeyore says, “How do you do?”)

Mole and Badger, Toad and Rat
Come to dine and stay to chat.
With the Little Prince in hand,
Alice in her Wonderland,

Call of the Wild (a pedig-read),
What else could anybody need?

Fables, folktales, nonsense verse
I carry home in my big purse.
Have as much fun by yourself!
Take a book down from the shelf.

Lewis, J. Patrick. 2009. The Underwear Salesman: And Other Jobs for Better or Verse. Ill. by Serge Bloch. New York: Simon & Schuster/Atheneum.

This is one of several poetry books that Simon & Schuster is publishing this spring and I was privileged to create a downloadable Poetry Guide for these spring titles that is available online here. Scroll down halfway and you’ll find the “Poetry Guide” link. There’s also a terrific downloadable “Celebrate Poetry” brochure with fun poet commentary. I've included several activities to accompany this fun underwear (funderwear?) book. Check it out!

Image credit: books.simonandschuster.ca

TLA poet Tracie Vaughn Zimmer: Steady Hands

In Steady Hands: Poems About Work, Tracie Vaughn Zimmer shifts from the novel-in-verse format of her last two works to offer an anthology of 34 poems on different jobs and careers in free verse gems bookended by “Morning” and “Night” poems. These poems are serious, descriptive, and thoughtful, with so many lovely turns of phrase like the ballet instructor who leads her four-year-old charges “in their first steps / toward grace.”

The collection includes some of the usual careers, like that of teacher, but also many that are not usually profiled like, “Tow Truck Driver,” “Exterminator,” and “Flight Attendant.” The poems offer nuggets of information alongside hints of personality—a lovely balance of direction and contemplation. Fascinating collage art by Megan Halsey and Sean Addy extend these juxtapositions—showing attributes of the worklife, as well as suggesting and extending the possibilities in each field.

There are plenty of metaphors to mine, too, and highlight as examples of how poems can be information-rich in subtle ways. Kids can select other possible jobs and research them and describe them poetically. What metaphors capture the movement, the activities, the highs, the lows of each career? How can these be represented visually with cut out words collaged on images and pictures?

Pair this book with J. Patrick Lewis’s brand new “career poetry” book, The Underwear Salesman: And Other Jobs for Better or Verse, illustrated by Serge Bloch (New York: Simon & Schuster/Atheneum, 2009). It’s diverse and varied, like Zimmer’s, but veers toward the zany and humorous side, making a fun counterpoint to Steady Hands.

You know I have a thing for poems about libraries and librarians and Zimmer does not disappoint. Enjoy this gem:

Librarian
by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer

Logging onto his blog,
the librarian reviews
a graphic novel he scored
at a conference in Toronto.
He edits
a podcast interview
with a new voice
in the poetry slam scene,
adds friends to the teen library
Internet café.
Then he grabs some sodas and
bags of snacks
and heads downstairs
to open the all-guy book club
that meets just after school.

Zimmer, Tracie Vaughn. 2009. Steady Hands: Poems About Work. New York: Clarion, p. 29.

Don’t you just love this hip, modern version of the librarian’s role? Zimmer turns many careers inside out by simply switching the genders one would usually associate with many careers. I love that! And the tiny details and feeling she injects into each poem give each job, career, and task dignity and distinction. The steady hand of this poet offers readers something to think about in a global world where our jobs are more intertwined and newly defined than ever before.

For more Poetry Friday fun, join our host Amy Planchak.

Thanks for coming to TLA, Tracie! :-)
What a treat to hear Tracie speak on our poetry panel. She shared wonderful backstory details about the creation of the art for Steady Hands-- including the fact that the photos and much of the realia for the collages came from HER and are photos of her family! She reached out to artist and illustrator Megan Halsey who was open to working with her on the art. The welder, for example, is a photo of Tracie's father and a tribute to him and his work as a welder. These nuggets make the book even more special, IMO.

Image credit: www.tracievaughnzimmer.com

National Library Week: A new Pat Lewis library poem

This week is also National Library Week (April 13-19)! First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association. And of course, I have to share a library poem (perhaps my favorite topic of all). This time, I’m lucky enough to have a new, original poem to share from the always generous and prolific, J. Pat Lewis. Enjoy!



The Librarian
by J. Patrick Lewis

After school one day I was talking to Mr.
Butterwinkle, the school librarian.
"Can you
Define ABECEDARIAN?" I asked.
"Easy," he said. "But
First I think you should
Go to Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, and...
Hmm, here's one," he said. "Now,
Isabelle, when you're looking for sparkling word
Jewels, try to
Keep them spit-shined, ready to go. A dictionary's
Like a trap, an irresistible
Mind trap.
Nobody can discover
One beaut without two more
Popping up-fifty-cent
Quality words-in
Rapid
Succession,
Totally
Unexpected
Verbal
Whizbangs.
Xerox them. Hang them in your locker. Now
You're in the
Zone. Oh, I forgot. ABECEDARIAN. Look it up."

Used with permission from J. Patrick Lewis.

I love this ABC connection, don’t you? Paul Janeczko writes about this poetic form in Poetry from A to Z: A Guide for Young Writers (New York: Bradbury, 1994). I have posted about the link between the ABCs and poetry before on April 21, 2007, last year. Just as a refresher, here are some poetry collections that are organized alphabetically ala the dictionary.

Ada, Alma Flor. 1997. Gathering the Sun: An Alphabet in Spanish and English. Lothrop, Lee, & Shepard.
Bryan, Ashley. 1997. Ashley Bryan's ABC of African American Poetry. Atheneum.
Harley, Avis. 2000. Fly with Poetry; An ABC of Poetry. Wordsong/Boyds Mills.
Harley, Avis. 2001. Leap into Poetry: More ABCs of Poetry. Wordsong/Boyds Mills.
Hopkins, Lee Bennett. 2003. Alphathoughts. Boyds Mills Press.
Hopkins, Lee Bennett. 1994. April Bubbles Chocolate. Simon & Schuster.
Janeczko. Paul, comp. 1994. Poetry from A to Z: A Guide for Young Writers. Bradbury.
Merriam, Eve. 1995. Halloween ABC. Aladdin.
Schnur, Steven. 1997. Autumn: An Alphabet Acrostic. Clarion. (See also: Winter: An Alphabet Acrostic; Spring: An Alphabet Acrostic; and Summer: An Alphabet Acrostic all by Steven Schnur)
Sierra, Judy. 2004. There's a Zoo in Room 22. Voyager.
Wilbur, Richard. 2001. The Disappearing Alphabet. Voyager.

Do you know of any other alpha-poems or alpha-poem collections? Visit your library during library week and let me know if you find any!

Picture credit: talking-dog.com

School Library Media Month

In addition to being National Poetry Month, April is also a time for celebrating School Library Media Month. Take a moment to think back about the library at your school when you were growing up. What role did it play in your reading? What about your neighborhood school today? Libraries can be pivotal in the school environment and are known to boost children’s achievement by providing greater access to print and media resources, particularly under the guidance of a knowledgeable librarian or library media specialist. It’s all about that person at the hub. Here’s one of my favorite poems about a school librarian from Kristine O’Connell George’s poetry collection for middle school.

School Librarian
By Kristine O’Connell George

Mrs. Thompson knows I love sad stories.
The books she lends me
come with
hidden bookmarks—


folded tissues tucked into
the sad parts.

From: George, Kristine O’Connell. 2002. “School Librarian” from Swimming Upstream: Middle School Poems. New York: Clarion Books, p. 35


Here are a few more poem gems about school librarians/library media specialists:

For the elementary grades:
“When the Librarian Reads to Us” by Kalli Dakos
From Put Your Eyes Up Here and Other School Poems. Simon & Schuster, 2003.

For high school:
“See, the Library” by Ellen Hopkins
From burned. McElderry, 2006.

And a cautionary poem:
“The Library Card” by Jane Medina
From My Name is Jorge on Both Sides of the River; Poems in English and Spanish. Boyds Mills Press, 1999.

You’ll find more lists of poems about libraries in my books Poetry Aloud Here and Poetry People, as well as in my 2006 article: “A place for poetry: Celebrating the library in poetry.” Children and Libraries. 4, (2), 35-41. As you can see, I love this topic! ☺

Picture credit: TWU SLIS

Preparing for National Poetry Month + National Library Week

Here at the mid-point of March, I thought I’d pause to begin preparations for National Poetry Month, right around the corner. In addition, I got an email from ALA reminding me that National Library Week is also coming up (April 13-19). As I’ve shared before, I love putting these two topics together, hunting for poetry ABOUT the library. In my resource book, Poetry Aloud Here (ALA, 2006), I share a list of 10 library-poems, but the hunt continues and I’ve been finding even more, including this gem by Kathi Appelt.

Javier
by Kathi Appelt

Javier, he was so cold that day
only a thin t-shirt and old jeans
to keep the icy air
from rubbing his ribs raw
only thin rubber soles
between his feet
and the cold concrete
with still an hour before the
bell rang

Mrs. Rivera, the librarian, she saw him
she couldn’t look directly
at his blue lips
or his naked arms
without shivering
but Mrs. Rivera, she could break the rules and
let him in
led him into that warm room
with its burnished tables
flame-stitched chairs
toasted books

Javier, he had a quick notion of heaven
and when he found that book
someone left opened to a
page of mustangs
wild and shaggy
ears back free
well Javier, he burned that page
into a place behind his sight
and kept it there all morning
all through the day
always

and now
when you see Javier
wild and shaggy
ears back free
look at that tall, proud boy
the icy air the cold concrete
lost their grip
Javier, he’s been to heaven
mustangs are there

From Appelt, Kathi. 1997. Just People and Paper/Pen/Poem: A Young Writer’s Way to Begin. Spring, TX: Absey & Co.

[Kathi also has a new novel just out, The Underneath, that is also quite amazing-- but that’s another topic!]

As you make plans to celebrate poetry month (and library week!), here are some creative ideas from our friends at Potato Hill Poetry, a wonderful Web resource with many unusual and innovative options for celebrating poetry, including:

1. Start each day with a poem read aloud by someone different (invite guest readers); 30 poems for 30 days
2. Leave a poem on your answering machine at home or school or as a cell phone message
3. Make a National Poetry Month Time Capsule. Students can submit favorite poems or their own original writing. Put them in the Time Capsule and have a ceremonial sealing, not to be opened until National Poetry Month next year.
4. Send a poem to your state or local representative or other government official.
5. Plan a poetry reading for a senior center, hospital, or local business

For more on poetry, join the Poetry Friday Round Up at Jama Rattigan’s Alphabet Soup.

Photo credit: The Beyond Words: Celebrating America's Libraries Photo Contest, which helped mark National Library Week 1999 and the Bicentennial of the Library of Congress.

Happy birthday, Mr. Shakespeare

William Shakespeare’s birthday is said to be today. He is captured beautifully in words and pictures in Bard of Avon (Morrow, 1992), the nonfiction picture book biography by Diane Stanley and Peter Vennema. One of my favorite parts of that book is the wonderful endnote detailing his unique coining of words such as “hint,” “excellent,” “lonely,” and “hurry.” And of course we also associate Shakespeare with the poetic form of the sonnet. It's a form that some of today’s poets who write for children have also tackled.

One of my favorite examples is Helen Frost’s Printz Award honor book, Keesha’s House (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2003) which incorporates both sonnets and sestinas. It’s the story-through-poems (remember novels in verse on April 19?) of a motley group of teenagers who each find themselves at a crisis point in their lives and come together at Joe’s house, a welcoming place for kids who aren’t welcome or safe in their own homes. The central character, a strong survivor named Keesha, is the catalyst for each teenager finding this safe haven, thus the book’s title. The various points of view make for compelling reading, with perspectives shifting as the story is pieced together through sonnets and sestinas. It is also an excellent audiobook read in multiple voices (Recorded Books, 2004). Here’s just one sampling of a sestina (and it happens to be set in the library and you know how I like poems about the library!):

Do Not Leave Children Unattended
Harris
by Helen Frost

After school and on weekends I go to the library
and do my homework or listen
to music. I brush my teeth, wash my hair,
and, a couple of times a week, I shave. They have
a private sink in one of the handicap stalls.
Sometimes I go in the youth section and sign

up to play computer games. There’s a sign
in there: DO NOT LEAVE CHILDREN UNATTENDED IN THE LIBRARY.
I know there’s younger kids than me who use the sink in that stall
like I do. I keep my eye on them. I try to listen
to adults that talk to them, especially in the rest room. Last week, I had
something creepy happen when I was combing my hair.

A guy made a comment about my gorgeous red hair,
which is nothing new. But right after that—the first sign
of something weird—he asked if he could have
a picture of me. I got out of there fast. When the library
was about to close, he left the same time I did. Hey, listen,
he said, you need a ride somewhere? I said, No, thanks, stalled

for time until he left. The next day, I came out of the stall
and he was in the rest room combing his hair.
He said something to me, but I didn’t stay to listen.
Now I watch every move he makes. If I ever see a sign
that he’s messing with one of the kids that hang out in the library,
I’ll—well, I don’t know what I’ll do, but I know I’d have

to help. I guess I’d act casual, like I had
some reason to be there—but I’d stall
around and eavesdrop till he left the kid alone. The library
should be a safe place, and if a kid needs a place to comb his hair,
just let him be. Hey! I finally got a job. I’m going to sign
the paperwork this afternoon. I have to listen

to a tape about dishwashing safety. That’s funny! I’ve listened
to my mother harp on that stuff all my life. Like—you have
to scrub the cutting board. Use bleach or boiling water. There’s a sign
in the rest room—in fact, there’s one in every stall—
reminding us employees to wash our hands. We have to use hair
nets if we get anywhere near food. The librarians

won’t be seeing so much of me now. That’s a good sign. I’ll have
a bathroom I can use at work, and I’ll just use the library stall
to wash my hair. I’ll listen to music while it dries.

from Frost, Helen. Keesha’s House. (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2003)

Other poets who have written sonnets for young people include:
J. Patrick Lewis
Alice Schertle
Myra Cohn Livingston
Naomi Shihab Nye
Jane Yolen

Picture credit: search.barnesandnoble.com

Happy Library Week (April 15 – 21)

Today marks the beginning of National Library Week, a time to “celebrate the contributions of our nation's libraries, librarians and library workers and to promote library use and support.” What a perfect time to seek out poetry about the library, librarians, books, and reading. I published an article last year in Children and Libraries that featured poetry for children about the library. [Vardell, S.M. (2006). A place for poetry: Celebrating the library in poetry. Children and Libraries. 4, (2), 35-41.] Here is a brief tidbit:

“Poetry can be the vehicle for highlighting the unique resource that is the library while providing a reminder of the special power of the genre of poetry for children, too. Since poems are generally short, they lend themselves to quick sharing as openings or closings for story times or special events. Since they are spoken word art, they lend themselves to oral or choral reading and can involve children in active participation in the poem performance. And since poems are intense containers of images and experiences, they can make a powerful point (about libraries, books, reading) in very few words. Finally, by choosing poems showcasing libraries, we can celebrate both the library and poetry itself, during National Poetry Month, National Library Week, School Library Media Month, all in April, or any other time of the year.

Lewis, J. Patrick. 2005. “Necessary Gardens” from Please Bury Me in the Library. San Diego, Harcourt.

Necessary Gardens
By J. Patrick Lewis

Libraries
Are
Necessary
Gardens,
Unsurpassed
At
Growing
Excitement.

This eight-line poem is an acrostic with each letter of the word “language” used to begin a line of the poem. After reading the poem aloud once, find eight volunteers, one for each word/line, to “pop up” and read/say each line wherever they are seated. In fact, with each word/line on a large card or mini-poster, this poem can be performed “popcorn” style with the words shouted out in nearly any order, for a spontaneous, creative alternative. This is one poem among many gems about books, reading, and the library—the theme of the anthology. And if children enjoy this acrostic form, challenge them to try writing their own acrostic poems with book-related words of their choosing. If you have a button maker, this poem can even fit on a button to promote the library, books, reading, AND poetry.”

In this previous article, I noted 13 poems about the library. Since then, I have found another 14 poems (for children and young adults). Here’s the new batch:

1. Appelt, Kathi. 1997. “Javier” from Just People and Paper/Pen/Poem: A Young Writer’s Way to Begin. Spring, TX: Absey & Co.
2. Bagert, Brod. 1999. “Library-Gold” from Rainbows, Head Lice and Pea-Green Tile; Poems in the Voice of the Classroom Teacher. Gainesville, FL: Maupin House.
3. Frost, Helen. 2003. “Do Not Leave Children Unattended” from Keesha’s House. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux.
4. Greenfield. Eloise. 2006. “At the Library” from The Friendly Four. New York: HarperCollins.
5. Grimes, Nikki. 1998. “42nd Street Library” from Jazmin’s Notebook. New York: Dial.
6. Gunning, Monica. 2004. “The Library” from America, My New Home. Honesdale, PA: Wordsong/Boyds Mills Press.
7. Hopkins, Ellen. 2006. “See, the Library” from burned. New York: McElderry.
8. Katz, Alan. 2001. ‘Give Me a Break” from Take Me Out of the Bathtub and Other Silly Dilly Songs. New York: Scholastic.
9. Lewis, J. Patrick. 2005. “Please Bury Me in the Library” from Please Bury Me in the Library. San Diego, Harcourt.
10. Livingston, Myra Cohn. 1994. “Quiet” in Hopkins, Lee Bennett, selector. April Bubbles Chocolate; An ABC of Poetry. New York: Simon & Schuster.
11. Lottridge, Celia Barker. 2002. “Anna Marie’s Library Book and What Happened’ in Pearson, Deborah, editor. When I Went to the Library. Toronto: Groundwood Books.
12. Nye, Naomi Shihab. 2005. “The List” from A Maze Me; Poems for Girls. New York: Greenwillow.
13. Prelutsky, Jack. 2006. “It’s Library Time” from What a Day It Was at School! New York: Greenwillow.
14. Silverstein, Shel. 1981. “Overdues” from A Light in the Attic. New York: HarperCollins.

I am now officially obsessed with this quest! If you know of any other poems for young people that focus specifically on the LIBRARY (or librarians), please let me know. Meanwhile, go to your local library, thank the hardworking library staff, wish them a “happy library week,” and check out some poetry!