Poetry Friday - Make A Choice

 Welcome to Poetry Friday! 

         FYI - I will be at the bookstore until 6 pm, often don't get home until close to 7. Will start reading in the evening!

I'm looking forward to your posts!

         Though I'm posting this on Leap Day, it's time to "March" on! When I signed up for this date, I thought I would write about spring. Yet, with the continuing turmoil in the world, I thought I'd prefer to write about choices. How are you choosing to change the world, perhaps only in 'your' world? It's hard to see the many needs and wonder if one little person can affect them. I imagine ripples spreading when one stone is thrown. Is it true? Can one stone make a difference? I hope that it can!

created by Linda M.

        

Acrostic Moment

 

Could you take a moment now,

Hasten to own a world of wishes 

Overlook the list--laundry, dusting, working late--

Install ‘be kind’ and ‘listen well’?

Could you look beyond and fasten

Everyone’s lives to part of yours?

 

          Linda Baie ©

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Poetry Friday - Heartbreak

  It's Poetry Friday, and Tabatha Yeasts is hosting HERE on her blog, The Opposite of Indifference. No matter what other wonderful words she posts, I know I'll love the quote at the top! Thanks for hosting, Tabatha!

created by Linda M.

        I thought I was writing to the prompt by the Poetry Sisters this last Friday in February, but alas, until I looked again, I thought they had said "love poems" and evidently did not read it all. They said "epistolary love poems". Yikes! Don't tell my former students that I didn't read "ALL" the instructions. I have no time to do more. Here is what I have this week.

        In my first year of teaching first grade, I had a call from a concerned parent. Remember, no internet, etc. Just a call to ask for a conference. I tried to imagine what the issue was. Her child was a great student and doing well. Well, what she was worried about is that her son had told her he was in love with me and was going to marry me when he grew up. She had to tell him that I was already married and he was so, so sad. It did all work out and we talked, had a lovely rest of the year. I'm sure he's grown up now with a wife and family. It was a wake-up call for me that I would be asked to help with all kinds of problems as a teacher, not just teaching reading and math.

my pic

          

Johnny Loved Miss Jones, His Teacher

 

Johnny was smitten the first day of school.

Upset, he soon learned there was a rule

that six-year-olds needed to grow up first.

He really thought his heart would burst.

Miss Jones could never be his date.

Sad Johnny had to wait and wait.

Throughout his schooling, he kept in mind

this first heartbreak, and, now resigned,

he searched and found a new love true.

To all the memories, he said “adieu”.

This time, grown up, he found a match:

she taught first grade, a perfect catch.

Linda Baie ©

      I host next week's Poetry Friday. March is Denver's snowiest month, but also 

welcomes spring and Daylight Savings Time! Are you wishing anything special for 

March? 

Monday Reading - Books for your Lists!

    

        Visit Kellee and Ricki at UnleashingReaders and Jen at Teach Mentor Texts to see what they and others have been reading! Your TBR lists will grow! Remember to check out the winners of the Cybil's awards! 

        I was not a Mexikid, but the adventures Pedro Martin tells in this wonderful graphic novel about his family's adventure(s) going to and from Mexico makes me want to have been one! I had some special abuelitos, but only one sibling!

       It's a memoir of Pedro's road trip with the family to bring their abuelito back from Mexico to live with them. Pedro has heard the stories of his brave and strong abuelito, crime-fighter, and part of the Mexican Revolution, but he isn't very excited to have him move in. Pedro has eight brothers and sisters and their home is crowded already. There's lots to learn about border crossing and fun toys to be found in Mexico, also huge parties with other family members, and then some sadness in different ways of saying goodbye. It's a trip that would be great all the way through, but the ending connection between Pedro and his abuelito makes the sweetest ending. Now I hope there's more to tell, next time! I loved the creative and varied way  Martin tells the story in his art and words, with lots of emotion in sad, hilarious, and happy times.   

         Awards won for this debut graphic novel: 

Newbery Honor Book   Pura Belpré Author Award

Pura Belpré Illustrator Award Tomás Rivera Children's Book Award

       It's a beautiful book by Julie Leung that was acknowledged as a Caldecott Honor and winner of the Asian Pacific American Award for Literature, where a mother tells her darling 'bao bei' (an endearment like 'darling' or 'honey') of his dual heritage through a story of dragons in two parallel stories. These adventures take him to his grandmothers, and along the way, he meets two different and enchanting versions of dragons and learns the stories. Hanna Cha filled my eyes with splendid and lush illustrations as the boy took his journey. The dragons are both different, and both fabulous, and the story creates a loving tale for those who connect with it and those who will wonder about their own stories. I can imagine the rich conversation when reading this aloud to a group of children.

      This won a Newbery Honor this year!

      Buffy Silverman has previously brought us the joys of autumn and welcoming spring, now the most recent revels in winter, where we in some areas often find beauty "On A Flake-Flying Day". I first read this on February 10th, happy to be home and watching my own flakes flying. Buffy's rhyming that accompanies fabulous photos glories in, as the sub-title says, "Watching Winter's Wonders". Kids make forts, red berries stand out, bears nap, and Buffy tells us all about it in delicious, winter-wonderful rhyme, like "Weasel whitens, Cardinal brightens, Frost glistens, and Owl listens." There is added information about each animal or happening included plus a list of books for further reading and a glossary. Buffy's books make a time of both mystery and celebration when studying seasons. Don't miss this latest one!

          Paul B. Janeczko's posthumous collection shares older poems and a few new ones from 34 poets, in three sections defining home: Home, Street, and Town. Some of the poems readers may recognize as old favorites, like X.J. Kennedy's rhythmic  "Home": "East side, West side,/all around the town./Which side/is the best side?/Wherever you sit down/to eat your supper, pet your cat. . ." And they will love the new "Ice Cream Truck" by Irene Latham. Doesn't everyone have one if they live in a town or city? Nikki Grimes writes about a "Block Party". It's a great book to share with students who will want to write about the special places they live, and perhaps illustrate their work. Hyewon Yum's watercolor and colored pencil illustrations beautifully show the lively days of people, and animals, too, having lots of fun where they live. The variety of ways to imagine where we live and what we do will inspire all who read this lovely book. It's a Cybils finalist in poetry collections.

Poetry Friday - Postcard Joy

 It's Poetry Friday, and Margaret Simon is hosting HERE on her blog, Reflections on the Teche. She's sharing two beautiful poems that encompass both joy and sorrow, a journey in all our lives. Thanks for hosting, Margaret!

created by Linda M.

   You all know of Jone's idea, which began years ago of sending postcards for New Year wishes. This year, the Year of the Dragon, was a theme for some. Those I received were created with gorgeous art and special wishes for living the year! I am grateful to each of you for those lovely pieces that came in my mail! Thank you, Jone, Denise, Gail, Linda M., Margaret, Molly, Robyn, Michelle, Carol V., Tabatha, and Mary Lee. (You will need to click to enlarge in order to read some.)

Thanks, Carol!

Thanks, Michelle!

Thanks, Gail!

Thanks, Jone!

Poetry Friday - Love Is In The Air

   It's Poetry Friday, and Carol Varsalona is hosting HERE on her blog, Beyond Literacy Link. Thanks for hosting, Carol, and for all the love in your post!

     Carol is sharing many of the postcards from our card exchange, created and managed by Jone MacCulloch. Thanks to everyone for sending me a smile nearly every day. I'll share soon!

                                                       -------------------------------------------

I've shared some of these antique Valentines I have from dear my mother-in-law, before. I adore them and found one more to show you. Helen, Miss Helen to her students, was one of those teachers who, after leaving high school, taught in a one-room schoolhouse in the 1920’s.  She rose well before sunup, saddled a horse, and left for the country building where her first duty was to start the fire.  Imagine those cold winter mornings! 

I love these special Valentines, quite different from the ones we see today, and I wanted to share one with all of you, too, as my Valentine's Day wish. 

Oh let’s make life

a jolly lark

A picnic if you

please.

And it will be just

this for me

If words you say

are these:

I Love You!

                                               Happy Valentine’s Day Everyone!

Monday Reading - Books You Should Not Miss!

   

        Visit Kellee and Ricki at UnleashingReaders and Jen at Teach Mentor Texts to see what they and others have been reading! Your TBR lists will grow! Nearly done, but reading for the Cybils is both wonderful and takes time. Remember the final winners will be announced on Valentine's Day. Happy February!

          Many books satisfy my reading life because they show me fascinating ways of thinking, new ideas for research, and incredible approaches to telling a story. Daniel Mason has written one of them in this book, North Woods. Two young people, in love, escape their Puritan home and land in this one small part of the North Woods of the "new world", later called New England. Their raising of one small cabin begins an amazing journey of that land, which includes a wide variety of land dwellers, some humans in various forms, some little-known and known creatures, and the vast, many-layered life of the woods. In various ways of telling the story, including prose and poetry, letters and art, Mason entertains and educates us while we travel the many years and watch a variety of people live their lives. Perhaps you'll make personal connections; perhaps not, but it's a wondrous tale!

        For a child on the autism spectrum, change isn't easy. He loves his teacher, Mrs. Tanaka, who keeps a calendar on the wall that shows every day, every week, the same. Until this Monday, Mrs. Tanaka announced that there would be a parade on Friday, so sharing day would move to Thursday. This is not what Henry wishes, and musical instruments handed out for parade marchers add to his frustration. They are too noisy! How he navigates the week through some thinking time and a discovery in the quiet closet brings a good ending, not only for Henry! Jenny Bailey and illustrator Mika Song start this easy reader series that Henry and lots of others will enjoy, "like always"!

Thanks to Candlewick Press
for this copy!

       In a debut publication, the background story is that Uma Menon wrote this book at the age of sixteen about her own household. She had been unable to find a similar book that told "her" story. It shares about a young girl named Sumi, whose mother, she tells, can speak two languages, Malayalam and English, and can "switch between them at the speed of sound". The power of being multi-lingual is celebrated as Sumi shares her mother's story of immigrating from India as a child and how she now has "two tongues" woven together. One early scene shows them at the grocery. Her mother asks the grandmother in Malayalam if they needed more milk, turned to Sumi, and spoke in a combination of both 'tongues,' then turned to the cashier and asked how she was doing in English. 

       I've seen, as Sumi calls it, this "superpower" several times through the years, once watching a guide on a boat tour switch from English to Spanish and back with expertise while presenting and answering questions.  Rahele Jomepour Bell's illustrations fill the pages with diverse groups of people, living in various places, Sumi practicing her own Malayalam when they travel to visit family, hoping she will soon have those two tongues woven into one, like her mother. She mentions varied accents, too, that "every person's voice is unique and important." It's a marvelous book inspiring everyone to learn to become multi-lingual. 

1st published in the UK, now thanks to Candlewick
Press for this copy published this year in the U.S.

        A young boy appears to listen to words of wisdom as illustrator Clara Anganuzzi takes us along with him and his animal companions, from elephants to leopards, parrots and penguins, gorillas, and giraffes. There's even a little mouse. Karl Newson's words tell about being brave and that sometimes, "We all have moments when we need to take a step back. . . while sometimes, fun and friends find us." It's filled with life's moments and supporting words, a lovely book to share with children or to give to them to read and think about each part. My favorite: "And every new experience/means a new memory is made!" 

Currently: Starting a mystery, All The Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby and Mexikid by Pedro Martin

       I've also been reading The Winter Army by Maurice Isserman, a history of the Tenth Mountain Division, very slowly. I discovered it at the used bookstore where I work, and because Camp Hale is here in Colorado and I've been there, I wanted to know more about its beginnings and the part soldiers from there played in World War II.

Poetry Friday - A Good Taste

       It's Poetry Friday, and Mary Lee Hahn is hosting HERE on her blog, A(nother) Year of Reading, with some intriguing words about 'secrets'.  Be sure to see what she and her 'inklings' have to say about them. 

       And, it's Groundhog Day! I don't have a poem about that, but I hope that someone will! Thanks for hosting, Mary Lee!     

         It's rather nice that Mary Lee's hosting from "A(nother) Year of Reading" because I have a poem about books. You probably know I work at a used bookstore. It's a non-profit run entirely by volunteers. And, it is a membership store, though you do not have to be a member. People join for a year and receive a certain number of credits to 'spend' on nearly all the books in the store, and when some are priced (we list on Amazon), they get 15% off of that price. It has hundreds of titles and is a place one seems unable to leave without a book! We rely entirely on donations which, if you donate, you can add to your credits! We do purchase a few best-sellers for one shelf and take special orders. I wish each of you could come visit!

one small area - paperback trade fiction

My Appetite

 

Books give a soda fizz,

sweet icing on a cake,

salt and pepper in a stew,

a chocolate ice cream shake,

 

Books taste like lollipops,

mint by the garden wall,

first strawberry ripe and read,

pasta with a huge meatball.

 

Books know the tang of lime;

they don’t forget the spice.

They flavor dim sum pages.

Their menu’s worth the price.

Linda Baie © 

I'm ready for another year of reading! 📚