105 Ways to Give a Book

Poetry Friday: Red Sings from Treetops

Red Sings from TreetopsWhat can I say about Red Sings from Treetops but lovely, lovely, lovely, lovely and oh yes, lovely. And that’s from someone who doesn’t care much for poetry as a rule. After checking out a library copy based on the book’s Caldecott silver medal and Cybils win, I had to buy my own copy. (Which I did through the Cybils site, because every book that you buy there gives a little bit back to that award.) My friend and poetry-lover Sara Lewis Holmes is sharing the winter poems on pink and green, but I have to stick with what can’t leave my mind as I look around our new arctic landscape:
White
whispers,
    f
       l  o
            a
         t
           s,
clumps,
traces its wet finger
on branches and stumps.
White dazzles day
and turns night
inside out.

A wrestle, a romp,
a feast:
Mmmmmmm...
winter tastes White.
Taking us through all the seasons in colors, these short poems by Joyce Sidman pack a velvet-covered punch, while Pamela Zagarenski’s illustrations invite long-lingering looks and sighs. Truly, I want to live in the world that Zagarenski sees.

Poetry Friday is hosted today by Irene Latham.

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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

This book was a stunner. Sidman is brilliant, and so is Zagarenski. *swoon*

Laura said...

Thanks for sharing. I will look up this book.

Laura Evans

Jan von Harz said...

I am a poetry love and love teaching a unit of poetry every year. The poem you provide from the book was wonderful...great imagery, and I love the way the poet provided the concrete image of the snow flakes floating. I will have to get this book and share it with my 8th graders.

Saints and Spinners said...

I am always on the lookout for poetry books that resonate with people who don't particularly care for poetry. I do enjoy poetry, but different kinds at different times. I will look for this book. Thank you for posting about it!

Cindy Green said...

I agree - stunning and brilliant! I work in the children's dept of my local library and just read it for the first time today - just amazing, both the poetry and the illustrations.