Poetry for Everyone

Nancy Brashear and Carolyn Angus
Poetry is for everyone, and for this column we reviewed 14 recently published poetry books for preschoolers to young adults that will delight, inform, and invite them to think about the world around them and how they interact with it. We encourage teachers to read aloud poetry every day, incorporate it across the curriculum, and add poetry books to classroom libraries.

Black Girl You Are Atlas. Renée Watson. Illus. by Ekua Holmes. (2024). Kokila.
“Black girl you are Atlas. The way no one expected you to be the fulfillment of prophecy. But it is you, always, who holds the world up.” In this poignant, semi-autobiographical collection of 38 poetry and prose entries, Renée Watson explores issues of sisterhood, gender, race, and class through the reflections of a Black girl, Renée, as she grows up. She succinctly substantiates the collective wisdom of women in “Sisterhood Haiku, I” with “And what would we do / without the knowing women? / How could we survive?” and two other haiku about sisterhood. Ekua Holmes’ vibrant mixed media collage artwork is a perfect match to the content and tone of this mesmerizing book. (Gr 6 Up)
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Bless Our Pets: Poems of Gratitude for Our Animal Friends. Lee Bennett Hopkins (Ed.). Illus. by Lita Judge. (2024). Eerdmans.
This anthology of 14 poems, each giving thanks for a different pet and accompanied by a playful watercolor-and-colored pencil illustration by Lita Judge, quickly engages the hearts of readers. Eric Ode implores, “Watch over every tiny part. / Whatever sniffs / or scurries . . .” in a poem about a gerbil; Joan Bransfield Graham murmurs, “Blessed are / the soft of fur, / the long of ear . . .” in a poem about a rabbit; and Charles Ghigna gets in a quip about a pet snake with “But heaven knows I’m grateful that— / this one belongs to you!” The last three poems in which a mouse dreams, an old calico cat rests, and an old dog snuggles “into me” provide a perfect wind down to slumber. (PreS Up)
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Climbing the Volcano: A Journey in Haiku. Curtis Manley. Illus. by Jennifer K. Mann. (2024). Neal Porter.
On a trip with his family, a young boy climbs to the summit of a dormant volcanic mountain. From awakening at dawn at their campground to bedding down on their return, the boy narrates their outdoor adventure entirely in haiku with verses such as “how do you / climb a mountain? / one step at a time” and “I made it / to the summit— / jumping even higher!” Jennifer K. Mann’s childlike artwork adds interest-catching details of their day’s hike. Back matter includes information about Oregon’s South Sister volcano, the geology of the Cascade Mountain Range, supplies for a mountain hike, the difference between traditional Japanese haiku and English haiku (usually with 10 to 14 syllables total), and the flora and fauna (with common and scientific names) pictured in the book. (PreK-Gr 2)
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​Eating My Words: And 128 Other Poems. Brian P. Cleary. Illus. by Andy Rowland & Richard Watson. (2024). Millbrook.
Brian P. Cleary uses wordplay and rhyme in this collection of 129 laugh-out-loud poems in varied forms such as limericks, acrostics, haiku, sonnets, and villanelles with informative sidebars and colorful, cartoon artwork by Andy Rowland and Richard Watson. For example, “At the Bus Stop” is accompanied by sidebars about alliteration and list poems and a spot illustration picturing the last line, “Shawn shows Cheyenne the green, scaly, slimy bug he found in his bed this morning.” The final selection, “A Recipe for Poetry,” ends with “. . . it’s time to eat your words!” Back matter includes a glossary of poetic terms, further reading, and an index organized by poetic forms. (PreK Up)
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Grace Notes: Poems About Families. Naomi Shihab Nye. (2024). Greenwillow.
Naomi Shihab Nye reflects on her life in this touching semi-autobiographical memoir in verse through more than 100 new free verse poems that focus on her mother and their complicated mother-daughter relationship, culture, and personal identity. Part One, “No Age Is Empty,” begins with the poem “How Parents Ever Get Together Anyway” that details how her American mother met her Palestinian husband while working in a psychiatric hospital in Kansas. “The only thing they had in common was / hope / and open minds.” The poems then shift to an exploration of family secrets, dreams, and the grace that comes with forgiveness. Part Two, “Sometimes We Need a Bigger Family,” expands to include poems about friends and family and ends on a note of resilience. (Gr 6 Up)
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Great Gusts: Winds of the World and the Science Behind Them. Melanie Crowder & Megan Benedict. Illus. by Khoa Le. (2024). MIT Kids.
After posing the questions “Can you ever really see the wind?” and “Can you ever really know the wind?” in an introductory poem, Melanie Crowder and Megan Benedict explore winds of the world in 14 expressive poems, each paired with a sidebar of information on how the wind forms, its geographic location, and its related weather system and presented against a stunning double-spread illustration by Khoa Le with accurate wind lines showing the movement of the wind. Back matter includes sections on the origin of wind, the naming of winds, and the use of some local traditional poetic forms; a map of where each of the winds blows; a glossary; and books for further reading. (Gr 3-5)  
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​Hoop Queens 2 (Sports Royalty). Charles R. Smith Jr. (2024). Candlewick.
In this follow-up to Hoop Queens (2003), Charles R. Smith Jr. pays tribute to 13 contemporary WNBA stars with dynamic poems complemented with photo-illustration artwork. Smith uses clever wordplay and rhythm to highlight the skills of these women athletes in profiles presented in different poetic forms against vibrant double-page backdrops. For example, Skylar Diggins-Smith is featured in the alliterative poem “S-S-S-Skylar” (“Southpaw / Skylar / sly / skittery / snaking . . .” with text laid out in a sweeping “S” shape), and in “Smooth Like What” for A’ja Wilson, “smooth” is reiterated ten times (A’ja game smooth like / chinchilla fur. / Left hand smooth like / the hum of a cat’s purr.”). Back matter includes “Poem Notes” featuring biographical information on the 13 ballers and Smith’s rationale for using specific poetic elements for their verses. (Gr 3 Up)
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​In and Out the Window. Jane Yolen. Illus. by Cathrin Peterslund. (2024). Philomel.
Jane Yolen’s robust collection of over 100 new and previously-published poems invites children to consider things to see and experience in poems grouped from “in” and “out” points of view in six sections: At Home, Animals, School, After School, Career Poems, and Calendar Poems. Each section is introduced by a thought-provoking poem about poetry such as “Why to Write a Poem,” “The Poem in Your Heart,” and “If There Is No Poem Today.” In the final poem, “From the Writer to the Readers: Saying Thank You,” describing how plants and animals show gratefulness in their everyday actions, Yolen sets the example for readers to also say, “Thank you. / Thank you. / Thank. / You.” (index by title) (PreK Up)
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​The Mighty Pollinators (Step Gently, Look Closely #7). Helen Frost. Photos by Rick Lieder. (2024). Candlewick.
This latest book in their series on observing the natural world begins with Helen Frost’s poem “Almost Invisible” about pollen, “fine powder, at the heart of a flower,” and Rick Lieder’s close-up photograph of the anthers of a flower on a blurred yellow background. Frost’s playful, lyrical verses and Lieder’s exquisite nature photography introduce readers to nine mighty pollinators: bees, ants, wasps, flies, butterflies, moths, bats, fireflies, and wind. Back matter includes informative sections on what pollen is, what pollination is, observing pollinators, and suggestions on helping pollinators. The photographed pollinators in each selection are identified by common name in a note on the back endpaper. (PreK Up)
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​Poemhood: Our Black Revival. Taylor Byas, Erica Martin & Amber McBride (Eds.). (2024). HarperTeen.
This expansive young adult anthology explores Black history, Black folklore, and the diversity of the Black experience through the poetic contributions of Black poets “who are now ancestors” (James Baldwin, Gwendolyn Brooks, Lucille Clifton, Langston Hughes, Etheridge Knight, Audre Lorde, Claude McKay, and Phillis Wheatley) and more than 25 modern poets. Each poem is accompanied by an outro, a brief closing section written by the editors that provides information and context for the poem and often includes a quote from the poet about its creation. As Taylor Byas, Erica Martin, and Amber McBride point out in their insightful introduction, Poemhood is, indeed, “a patchwork quilt of poetry that highlights and celebrates the Black experience—old and new.” Back matter includes biographical notes on the editors and contributing poets. (Gr 9-12)
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​Poetry Comics. Grant Snider. (2024). Chronicle. 
In graphic novel format with bright cartoonlike illustrations in panels of poems organized in Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter sections, each ending with a “How to Write a Poem” verse, Grant Snider inspires a young girl and boy (as well as readers) to create their own poetry. The Spring section opens with the girl writing, “I want to put down / on paper the feeling / of fresh possibilities” and ends with the advice “Find a quiet place / … A poem will rush in to fill the space,” in “How to Write a Poem #1.” The Winter section begins with “A new page— / my words huddle close / to keep warm” and ends with “How to Write a Poem #4” that takes her writing “somewhere undiscovered.” On the final page, “A Year of Poetry,” the girl celebrates with her cat. (Gr 3-5)
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Sometimes I Feel Like an Oak (Sometimes I Feel Like #3). Danielle Daniel. Illus. by Jackie Traverse. (2024). Groundwood.
Danielle Daniel’s 12 poems about different trees take young readers through the four seasons from spring to winter while focusing on a specific physical attribute for each tree such as maple trees have flowing sap and cherry trees have dainty pink blossoms. Many of Ojibway Jackie Traverse’s realistic illustrations, done in acrylics and gouache, feature a child identifying with the tree. For example, “Sometimes I feel like an oak, / solid, mighty and stout” shows a child hanging from a branch. Back matter includes spot illustrations of the trees paired with an emotion such as the birch with optimism, the cedar with healing, and the pine with peace. In an author’s note, Daniel explains that she believes, as did her Algonquin ancestors, that trees are sentient beings that can teach us how to care for each other. (PreK-Gr 2)
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​This Is a Tiny Fragile Snake. Nicholas Ruddock. Illus. by Ashley Barron. (2024). Groundwood.
Nicholas Ruddock’s poems reflect helpful and respectful encounters that humans have with 15 animals. In “Snake,” the opening poem, children relocate a tiny, fragile snake they almost stepped on “to a nearby woods, / no longer under heel.” In “Hummingbird,” a young girl assists a helpless bird in extricating its beak from a screen.The final poem, “Winter,” reports on what each of the 15 animals is doing during this season including that “the moose has moved into the woods / knee-deep in fallen snow” . . .  “while curled up in a nest of moss / lies our tiny fragile snake.” Each of Ashley Barron’s vibrant mixed media illustrations spans across a double spread and adds visual details to the experiences humans have with animals in the poems that read aloud well. (PreK Up)
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​Windsongs: Poems About Weather. Douglas Florian. (2024). Beach Lane
Douglas Florian’s collection of 20 rhyming poems gives young readers a witty and informative introduction to types and elements of weather (rain, hail, snow. fog, tornadoes, lightning, thunder, and more) as well as general topics (weather, atmosphere, weather instruments, meteorologists). The verses on backgrounds of saturated colors vary in poetic form and are paired with Florian’s childlike mixed media illustrations, most picturing children out in the weather, on facing pages. For example, the illustration for “Tornado” shows two children and their cat being tossed around by a twisting tornado, and the final poem, “Climate Change,” pictures three activists holding up “our blue planet Earth.” Back matter includes a glossary, weather websites for kids, and selected sources and further reading. (PreK Up)
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​Nancy Brashear is Professor Emeritus of English at Azusa Pacific University, in Azusa, California. Carolyn Angus is former Director of the George G. Stone Center for Children’s Books, Claremont Graduate University, in Claremont, California.