A Child's Introduction to Poetry Listen While You Learn About the Magic Words That Have Moved Mountains, Won Battles, and Made Us Laugh and Cry

by Driscoll, Michael; Hamilton, Meredith

• ISBN13: 9781579122829
• ISBN10: 1579122825
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-05-06
• Publisher: Workman Kids

Summary

Poetry can be fun-especially when we can read it, hear it, and discover its many delights with the help of cartoon character Professor Driscoll, delightful illustrations, and the poetry read aloud on CD. This wide-ranging journey through the history and highlights of the world's poetry covers everything from epics and odes to nonsense verse and haikus, and is filled with examples of every style. The multimedia package encourages children to listen, read, and learn-and opens the door to a lifetime of appreciation of a rich literary tradition. It painlessly introduces kids (and parents, too) to the greatest poets in history, from Homer and Shakespeare to Robert Frost and Ogden Nash-and provides excellent examples of their work and commentary on what makes it so special. In short, this is a galloping tour through poetic history loaded with all of our most significant and beloved poems. In addition to charming illustrations on every lively page, A CHILD'S INTRODUCTION TO POETRY contains a full-length CD with wonderful renditions of the poems read by professional actors.

Author Biography

Michael Driscoll is a writer and editor whose work has been published by Reuters, the Associated Press, L.A. Weekly and The New York Press, among other publications. He's a former editor at Black Dog & Leventhal, where he worked on a wide range of titles for children and adults. He studied poetry while earning his English degree from Emory University in Atlanta. He lives in West Virginia Meredith Hamilton graduated from Brown University and has an MFA from The School of Visual Arts. Formerly an art director at Newsweek and Time Inc., she has gladly forsaken the corporate world. Her work has been used in books, magazines, and animations. She lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband and three children

Table of Contents

Introducing Professor Driscoll	p. 7
The Rhymes and Their Reasons
Poems of Cradles and Bough-Breakings, Too, Moon-Jumping Cows and Ten Kids in a Shoe (Nursery Rhymes)	p. 10
Rhymes That Prompt Laughter (If That's What You're After) (Nonsense Verse)	p. 14
Nineteen Lines but Just Two Rhymes (The Villanelle)	p. 17
There Once Was a Poem So Outrageous, Read Aloud, It Became Quite Contagious (The Limerick)	p. 20
Haikus Have Three Lines and Seventeen Syllables Simple, Beautiful (The Haiku)	p. 24
Gather Round for a Story of Heroes and Glory (Narrative Verse)	p. 26
My Dear, Aren't You Smitten by These Words That I've Written? (Lyric Verse)	p. 28
A Poem Fantastic (Though Usually Old) That May Teach a Lesson (So It's Often Retold) (The Ballad)	p. 30
Sheep, Shepherds, and Other Sappy Stuff (The Pastoral)	p. 33
Poems of Feelings and Hearts Shining Bright (They're a Pleasure to Hear, But a Devil to Write) (The Sonnet)	p. 36
When You Haven't Got Time to Think of a Rhyme (Free Verse)	p. 38
Alphabet Poems, Riddles, Epitaphs, and Other Unusual Styles (Poems Peculiar)	p. 40
Poetry's Greats: Rulers of Rhyme, Legends of the Lyric and Superstars of the Spoken Word
The First Poet	p. 44
The Bard	p. 46
The Free Spirit	p. 50
The Artist	p. 52
The People's Poet	p. 54
Daughter, Wife, and Poet	p. 56
A Poet of "Fantastic Terrors"	p. 58
A Rebel without Applause	p. 61
Voice of America	p. 64
A Poet of Heaven and Earth	p. 66
Poems of Everyday Beauty	p. 68
The Adventurer	p. 70
An Englishman in Bombay	p. 72
A Good Poet for Bad Children	p. 74
American Spirit	p. 76
The Thinker	p. 79
A Brave New Voice	p. 82
The Beat of the City	p. 84
Irish Eye	p. 86
Visions of Mexico	p. 88
Caged Bird's Song	p. 90
Glossary	p. 92
Bibliography	p. 94
Credits	p. 95
CD Listing	p. 96
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