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Hopkins, Lee Bennett. 2011. I Am the Book. Ill by Yayo. New York. Holiday House. ISBN 9780823421190
1. Review of Book:
I Am the Book is an anthology consisting of 13 poems selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins. The poems were written by various well-known and award-winning poets, as well as himself. All of the works featured celebrate reading and the small pleasures a good book or poem may bring. The poems highlight various aspects that make books magical and they describe some of the adventures where books can take one's imagination. All of the poems are of consistent quality and they reinforce the idea that people love books and reading for various reasons. The poems urge children of all ages to think about what their favorite book is, what they like best about reading, and where they like to go to read. Some of the poems rhyme, and most are concrete enough for most children to understand their meaning. However, many of the poems may contain words and phrases that may be new to children, but when shared aloud and discussed children will gain new knowledge and insight about the poems meaning. By sharing the colorful, acrylic painted illustrations children will also begin to understand some of the poems more completely, such as:
When I Read
Beverly McLoughland
When I read, I like to dive
In the sea of words and swim.
Feet kicking fast across the page
Splashing words against my skin.
When I read, I like to float
Like the gull that trusts the sea,
The ebb and flow of tidal words
Easy under me.
Yayo, the illustrator, painted a picture of a person diving into an ocean, but the ocean is located on top of a huge book. This will help children visualize Beverly McLoughland's hidden meaning.
At the end of the anthology Lee Bennett Hopkins included a small excerpt about each of the featured authors, and where one might find other works written by them. Overall, I Am the Book, is a timeless book of poems that will inspire one to find that perfect book and never put it down.
2. Classroom/Library Connection:
Before Reading:
Before reading a class discussion can be held to make a list of favorite books and to share about favorite things the children like to do or favorite places the children like to be when they read. Then a poem like, Book, can be read aloud to get children's imaginations going.
Book
Amy Ludwig VanDerwater
Buried in blankets
Book in my bed
Snuggled in story
By heart
In my head
I wallow in words
Chapter One
Till The End.
Closing the cover
I sigh-
Good-bye, friend.
After Reading:
Children can celebrate reading with a read-a-thon day. They can bring blankets, pillows, and favorite books and share their favorite parts of books with the class as well as have quiet time to read in the classroom along with their friends.
3. Review Excerpts:
In this picture-book collection from veteran anthologist Hopkins, 13 well-known children’s poets celebrate how books can take readers on wild adventures (“I storm / toward shackled screams / of a kidnapped damsel”), as well as how plain words can reveal the surprising drama in ordinary things, even the rhyming sounds of a clock: “tick-tock / ding-dong / bing-bong.” Karla Kuskin speaks about the “wonders of wandering / wonderful pages” and “the nonsense and knowledge” the come “tumbling out.” And in another selection, Kristine O’Connell George writes, “riding home from the library, / don’t need a window seat. / Got a great new book to read, / eleven more beneath my feet.” The whimsical, light-toned acrylic artwork extends the metaphors with witty, fantastical transformations of books: in one scene, a dark-blue book cover becomes an ocean, where you can “dive in the sea of words and swim.” Fun for sharing with preschoolers, this will also spark discussion in grade-school writing and art classes. Notes about each poet are appended. (Booklist-Hazel Rochman )
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