Review by Booklist Review
Though it's a bit of a gamble that mixing poetry with math will make either any less baffling, Lewis' grab bag of classic poems rewritten to include numbers puzzlers has an undeniably fun spirit. The math ranges from simple (asking how many cuts it takes to make 10 pie pieces in a reworking of Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven ) to muddied (in the spin on A. A. Milne's Us Two, the line eight plus two times two can really go in either of two ways) to downright challenging (asking kids to calculate the tax on a train ticket, and then a tip on the ticket plus tax, in the poem inspired by Langston Hughes' April Rain Song ). Slack's ebullient artwork matches the goofy tone of the poems, and the answers to each problem are printed upside-down on each spread. This book could come in handy for a variety of different classroom purposes, but confirmed mathletes are probably the best bet for an audience.--Chipman, Ian Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Children's poet laureate Lewis turns poems from Whitman, Frost, Lear, and more into story problems (poetry problems?) to comically absurd effect. Inspired by Dickinson, Lewis writes, "My book closed twice before its close-/ The two opposing pages/ That added up to 113-/ Were smudged around the edges-" and invites readers to supply the page numbers. Another poem is modeled after "The Termite" by Ogden Nash: "Some termite burrowed under rugs/ And found three hundred thirteen bugs./ If eighty-two plus fifteen snore,/ How many termites chew the floor?" Solutions appear upside-down. Slack's bug-eyed caricatures are an exuberant complement to Lewis's delightfully offbeat union of poetry and math. Ages 6-9. Agent: Ginger Knowlton, Curtis Brown. Illustrator's agent: Lori Nowicki, Painted Words. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-6-Famous poems are adapted into math problems involving boxer shorts, pizza, termites, and more. I think that I shall never solve/A poem that makes my brain evolve/Word problems are made by fools like me/But only Patrick Lewis can make poems like these. Silly, colorful art adds appeal. (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Inspired by the works of different poets, from Poe to Silverstein, each of fourteen poems suggests a brain-teasing math question with the answer (and the arithmetic required to solve it) provided, upside down on the right-hand page. The level of difficulty fluctuates wildly. Biographical information about the poets is appended. Slack's over-the-top digitally created cartoon art adds an air of outright hilarity. (c) Copyright 2012. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Arithme-Tickle (illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz, 2001), Lewis cleverly combines math and language arts with this collection of humorous poetry parodies that present readers with math word problems to solve. Fourteen famous poets and some of their more prominent works are the basis for Lewis' parodies, which are all in good fun and retain the structure, rhyme and rhythm of the originals. Each poem presents children with at least one math problem to solve, and many of them require several steps to get to the final answer. The level of difficulty varies as much as the poems themselves. Teachers will appreciate the wide array of mathematics required to solve the puzzles. In addition to the four basic operations, the challenges test knowledge of fractions, percentages, decimals, area, perimeter and money. But language arts teachers are not to be left out of the fun. While the original poems are, sadly, not included, backmatter does include a very short bio of each poet. From Lear, Whitman and Dickinson to Hughes, Nash and Silverstein, this is like a who's who of famous poets. Slack's digital illustrations match the whimsy and fun of the poems, the tongue-in-cheek humor in full gear. While the illustrations provide no clues as to how to solve the math, the answers are printed upside down on each spread. Humor, math and poetry--who knew they were such a good combination? (Poetry/math. 8-12)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
