Review by Booklist Review
With this sixth addition to the Poetry Adventures series, Cleary is on his way to being an expert at introducing children to types of poems they would otherwise have no idea about. This entry presents list poems, which are exactly what they sound like lyrical lists. Although the idea sounds simple enough, the poems are surprisingly rich, including an ode to a teacher's ties, the woes of phlegm, and an alphabetical classroom. A list of everything yellow reads, Butterscotch and bumblebees / ears of corn and mac and cheese / pet canaries, dandelions / those silly shoes of Uncle Brian's, while the accompanying illustration on the page is just as delightful. Watson's cartoon illustrations are colorful and bright, featuring diverse and comically expressive people with round faces. In one, a mischievous-looking student has scrunched up in the class pet's cage, while in another, a child looks positively green from what lives in the school microwave. The combination of the poems and illustrations will provoke a laugh in even the most devout of poem dislikers.--Linsenmeyer, Erin Copyright 2016 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 2-5-With polish and wit, Cleary has come up with a title for educators, homeschoolers, and young poets on how to create and read a list poem. Clustered around topics that would be of interest to the elementary set, poems take on home, school, sports, and camp. The school-themed poems tackle subjects such as the lost and found and the school microwave. Jump rope skippers will appreciate the iambic beat of "Alison's a chatterbox. Ben is always crying./Chloe smells like chicken soup, and Dylan's often lying." The themes of the pieces on home and family include the discovery of forgotten and unusual items from under the bed, the glove box, and the pockets of cargo shorts. One poem, "Yellow," has an accompanying yellow illustration and the rhyme "Butterscotch and bumblebees,/ears of corn and mac and cheese." There are many embellishments on the poetic form, such as rhyming couplets, internal rhymes, and alliteration. This selection will have students writing list poems in no time. Cute, cartoon-style illustrations support the images within each poem. VERDICT Appropriately sized for independent readers, this fun and imaginative volume is a go-to poetry handbook for the elementary crowd.-Teresa Pfeifer, The Springfield Renaissance School, MA © Copyright 2016. 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
Cleary's appealing poetry series continues with these volumes featuring quatrains, four-line verses that usually rhyme, and list poems, which enumerate things, places, people, events, etc. The brief, friendly introductions to each type of verse are followed by funny, goofy, sometimes-gross poems about birthdays, bathrooms, pets, drippy noses, teachers' ties, summer camp, and more, each animated by colorful cartoon art. Reading list, websites. [Review covers the following titles: I Saw an Invisible Lion Today and Underneath My Bed.] (c) Copyright 2017. 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
The sixth installment in the growing list of Poetry Adventures focuses on just that: lists.Here Cleary and Watson present illustrated rhymed and unrhymed poems cataloging zany subjects ranging from wished-for delights to unsavory remnants moldering away in the school microwave or under ones bed. Though one might expect the 16 poems collected here just to center on objects, like things that are Yellow or left At the Lost and Found, Cleary also provides inventories of what happens, for example, in April, at the bus stop, in the classroom, or at camp, inspiring children to observe not only things but actions they encounter. He cleverly points to the irony of the glove compartment that contains nearly every household item except gloves and, in an especially hilarious poem, suggests that dinosaurs went extinct out of boredom and deprivation, due to their having no skateboards, / / no ice cream, / no smartphones, / no bicycles, / no french fries, / no amusement parks, / and / no Oreos. Throughout, Clearys creative lists are animated by Watsons light, vividly colored, and warmly drawn illustrations, spotlighting deliciously gory details like bug bites and scratches earned at camp or slimy, lime-green snot covering everything an allergy-plagued boy touches. Whether capturing fun or chronicling items that disgust, Cleary and Watson again brilliantly open the world of verse, enticing young readers to dive in. (further reading) (Picture book/poetry. 6-10) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
