What I’m Doing at Kirkus This Week,
Plus What I Did Last Week, Featuring
Kyrsten Brooker and Melissa Sweet

h1 January 17th, 2014 by jules


From Firefly July: A Year of Very Short Poems,
selected by Paul B. Janeczko and illustrated by Melissa Sweet

(Candlewick, March 2014)


 


 

Good morning.

Today over at Kirkus, I wrote about Kadir Nelson’s newest book, Baby Bear.

I COMPLEEEEETELY FORGOT that I’d recently read a wonderful Q&A over there about this book — Jennifer M. Brown chatting with Kadir, that is. Repeat after me: Welcome to the Department of Redundancy Department.

But at least Kirkus was nice about it and posted my column anyway.

So, what I suggest is that you read Jennifer’s Q&A. If you want to read my thoughts on the book, knock yourself out. Next week, I’ll follow-up with some art from Kadir.

* * *

Last week (here), I talked about new some new poetry picture book titles, and today I have some art from them. I didn’t manage to secure spreads in time from Lin Oliver’s wonderful Little Poems for Tiny Ears, illustrated by Tomie dePaola (which is a really superb book). But if I get them later, I’ll amend this post.

Enjoy.


 

From Firefly July: A Year of Very Short Poems,
selected by Paul B. Janeczko
and illustrated by Melissa Sweet
(Candlewick, March 2014):


 


(Click to enlarge and see spread in its entirety)



 

From Joan Bransfield Graham’s The Poem That Will Not End: Fun with Poetic Forms and Voices,
illustrated by Kyrsten Brooker
(Two Lions, January 2014):


 


“I tried to eat my breakfast but didn’t hesitate
to scribble on the napkins and doodle cross my plate. …”

(Click to enlarge)


“The bell rang and I bolted, wasn’t running out of steam.
I wrote with mud out in the yard—chased by the soccer team. …”

(Click to enlarge)



(Click second image to see spread in its entirety)

* * * * * * *

FIREFLY JULY: A YEAR OF VERY SHORT POEMS. Compilation copyright © 2014 by Paul B. Janeczko. Illustrations copyright © 2014 by Melissa Sweet. “The Island” by Lillian Morrison. Excerpted from “Two Pictures” in Whistling the Morning In by Lillian Morrison. Copyright © 1992 by Lillian Morrison. Used by permissoin of Marian Reiner for the author. “In Passing” by Gerald Jonas. Used by permission of the author. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Candlewick Press, Somerville, MA.

THE POEM THAT WILL NOT END: FUN WITH POETIC FORMS AND VOICES. Copyright © 2014 by Joan Bransfield Graham. Illustrations copyright © 2014 by Kyrsten Brooker. Spreads used by permission of the publisher, Two Lions.





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