Hopkins, Lee Bennett. I Am the Book. Ill by Yayo New York: Holiday House, 2011.
ISBN: 0823421198
ISBN: 0823421198
Summary: A collection of thirteen poems all about the pleasure reading can bring to a person. Poems that show the reader there is a book for every reason, and stories that change with the seasons. A great picture book that will instill a love for books and reading at an early age.
Analysis: This thematic picture book is a collection of poems by various poets that focus on losing yourself in a book. I love the illustrations for each poem as they depict the imagination that books bring to the reader. The artwork throughout give the illusion of "living" inside a book showing the reader you can lose yourself in the imagination a good book can create, entering worlds yet unseen. The illustrations transform you into a story showing different aspects of reading. The reader can feel the magic!
A few poems seem to focus on poetry alone, showing different forms from quatrains to sonnets, while others have an ABAB rhyme scheme creating that sing-song feel. All but one of the poems have a lovely flow to them. Most with rhyme through the use of assonance and consonance, and others with onomatopoeia. The lyrical flow of each poem reads like a song and will have students wanting to hear them again and take part in. I Am the Book not only will teach students about poetry but also how reading can be fun, encouraging them to read more. Each page is a new adventure. Below is one of my favorite poems from the book...
In the back, are blurbs about each poet we meet in this collection, telling us who they are, what they are known for, and where the reside. If you love books and reading, you will absolutely fall in love with this book too!
A few poems seem to focus on poetry alone, showing different forms from quatrains to sonnets, while others have an ABAB rhyme scheme creating that sing-song feel. All but one of the poems have a lovely flow to them. Most with rhyme through the use of assonance and consonance, and others with onomatopoeia. The lyrical flow of each poem reads like a song and will have students wanting to hear them again and take part in. I Am the Book not only will teach students about poetry but also how reading can be fun, encouraging them to read more. Each page is a new adventure. Below is one of my favorite poems from the book...
Wonder Through the Pages
by Karla Kuskin
"So I picked out a book
on my own
from the shelf
and I started to read
on my own
to myself.
And nonsense and knowledge
came tumbling out,
whispering mysteries,
history's shout,
the wisdom of wizards,
the songs of the ages,
all wonders of wandering
wonderful pages."
Accolades/Scholarly Reviews: Beehive Children's Poetry Book Award nominee
From School Library Journal 04/01/2011: "The attractive and fanciful acrylic paintings feature exaggerated shapes and perspectives that go nicely with the flights of imagination depicted in the poems. Literature-loving adults will want to share this book with the young people in their lives."
From Booklist 03/01/2011: "The whimsical, light-toned acrylic artwork extends the metaphors with witty, fantastical transformations of books: in one scene, a dark-blue book cover becomes an ocean, where you can dive in the sea of words and swim."
Connections: Before reading this picture book to students, ask them to think about a time when they were reading for fun. Where were they? What was the weather like? When do they most like to read? Then read the poems and observe the connections the students make. Have the students draw a page for the book that represents their favorite spot to read. A wonderful companion book for this one would be BookSpeak! Poems About Books by Laura Purdie Salas, illustrated by Josee Bisaillon.
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