Joan Baez (Monday Poem)

by George Ella Lyon


In the blistering sun,
facing the original
rainbow coalition,
I led 350,000 people
in "We Shall Overcome,"
and I was near my beloved
Dr. King when he put aside
his prepared speech and let
the breath of God thunder
through him, and up over
my head I saw freedom,
and all around me
I heard it ring.


from Voices from the March on Washington Poems by J. Patrick Lewis and George Ella Lyon, 2014, WordSong

Lena (Monday Poem)

by J. Patrick Lewis

Instead
Of her
              Most famous song,
"Stormy
Weather,"
              She sang one long,
Strong word,
"Free-eeee-dommmm!"
              And that would be
One fine
Eight-second
              Symphony.



from Voices from the March on Washington Poems by J. Patrick Lewis and George Ella Lyon, 2014, WordSong

Moonlily (Monday Poem)

by Marilyn Nelson


When we play horses at recess, my name
is Moonlily and I'm a yearling mare.
We gallop circles around the playground,
whinnying, neighing, and shaking our manes.
We scrape the ground with scuffed saddle oxfords,
thunder around the little kinds on swings
and seesaws, and around the boys' ball games.
We're sorrel, chestnut, buckskin, pinto, gray,
a herd in pastel dresses and white socks.
We're self-named, untamed, untouched, unridden.
Our plains know no fences. We can smell spring.
The bell produces metamorphosis.
Still hot and flushed, we file back to our desks,
one bay in a room of palominos.


from how i discovered poetry by marilyn nelson, illustrations by Hadley Hooper, 2014, Dial

Fueling Imagination by Sharing Memories (FAMILY magazine reviews)

During January we celebrate the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. This can be an opportunity to remember his historic “I Have a Dream” speech. It can also be a time for reviewing our country’s past and noting changes that move us toward a bright future. The books below offer children and families a chance to spend time reading aloud and talking together. Give your child the gift of time with you to wonder about how the months ahead of us can be transformed by our current national conversation.

Tea Cakes for Tosh by Kelly Starling Lyons 

Illustrated by E. B. Lewis

Putnam, $16.99 

Interest Level: Junior Kindergarten – Grade 2 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

           

Tosh loved his grandma Honey’s delicious golden tea cakes. She matches them with a memorable story from family history. A plantation cook hides tea cakes in her pocket, to give her grandchildren “a taste of sweet freedom.”

            When Honey’s memory begins to fail, Tosh decides to bake tea cakes to share with her. Lyons lyrical text and easy dialog show the strong family ties between generations. 

            Award winning illustrator Lewis’ trademark watercolors match life-like paintings to realistic language. Muted colors help the reader shift into the past, from Honey’s colorful kitchen. This gentle tale emphasizes the importance of sharing memories to strengthen family traditions. A recipe for tea cakes is included at the back.

We March by Shane W. Evans  

Roaring Brook Press, $16.99 

nterest Level: Junior Kindergarten – Grade 3 

(This book is may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

A family wakens and prepares for this march by attending church, painting signs and traveling by bus. They are participants in the 1963 March on Washington. They walk, sing, and although hot and tired, are hopeful.

The dusky colors of morning brighten into the greens and blues of a golden August day. Brushstrokes add detail, movement and depth. Although largely African American, the pictures clearly reveal a rainbow of participants.

Additionally, illustrations show the Washington Monument, where the march began. Also familiar is the Lincoln Memorial where Martin Luther King Jr. spoke about his dream. 

            Using few keenly chosen words and compelling images, Evans’ conveys a simple but powerful story of why the march happened and how. A note from the author is at the end.

 

Ellen’s Broom by Kelly Starling Lyons 

Illustrated by Daniel Minter

Putnam, $16.99 

Interest Level: Junior Kindergarten – Grade 2 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

           

This cheerful story set during Reconstruction, celebrates the end of slavery. An announcement is made from the church pulpit that former slaves can now register their marriages legally. As part of the beginning of freedom, Ellen and her family join others in merry-making.

Minter’s beautiful hand painted linoleum block prints show the tradition of “jumping the broom” – a ritual slaves used at their weddings. Together, Ellen’s family walks to the courthouse to get a legal marriage certificate. Mama holds the broom, through which Ellen has woven flowers. Later, it is hung, with the certificate, above the home fireplace.

Brown faces, colorful clothing and textures of stone and wood in the artwork glow with vitality. They link emotional expression to the vibrant text and vivid dialog. Quieter colors show scenes from slave times, as Papa explains why the broom was used.

An Author’s Note reveals how Lyons’ family history inspired this lively picture book.

 

ADDITIONAL HISTORICAL TALES

Belle, the Last Mule at Gee’s Bend 

by Calvin Alexander Ramsey and Bettye Stroud, illustrated by John Holyfield

Candlewick Press, $15.99 

Interest Level: Grade 2 – Grade 3 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

Hope’s Gift 

by Kelly Starling Lyons, illustrated by Don Tate

Putnam, $16.99 

Interest Level: Junior Kindergarten – Grade 2 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

Portrait by a Neighbor (Monday Poem)

by Edna St Vincent Millay


Before she has her floor swept
Or her dishes done,
Any day you'll find her
A-sunning in the sun!

It's long after midnight
Her key's in the lock,
And you never see her chimney smoke
Till past ten o'clock!

She digs in her garden
With a shovel and a spoon,
She weeds her lazy lettuce
By the light of the moon.

She walks up the walk
Like a woman in a dream,
She forgets she borrowed butter
And pays you back cream!

Her lawn looks like a meadow,
And if she mows the place
She leaves the clover standing
And the Queen Anne's lace!



from A Few Figs from Thistles, Edna St Vincent Millay, 1948, Harper and Brothers

New World (Monday Poem)

by Shel Silverstein


Upside-down trees swingin' free,
Busses float and buildings dangle,
Now and then it's nice to see
The world from a different angle.


from Falling Up by Shel Silverstein, 1996, Scholastic

Christmas is On the Way! (FAMILY magazine reviews)

As the holidays approach, we note the longer nights and shorter days.  The season of the celebration of light can be a time to remember and reflect on family customs.  It can also be an opportunity to create new traditions.  Reading holiday books together can become more than a routine.  Especially is this true when these kinds of rituals are combined with terrific stories and wonderful memories. Take time during this busy season to enjoy each others company reading out loud together.

Night Tree by Eve Bunting 

Illustrated by Ted Rand  

Harcourt Brace & Company, $7.00 (paperback) 

Interest Level: Kindergarten – Grade 2 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

            A young boy and his family decorate their favorite tree in the quiet moonlit forest.  They have prepared popcorn strings, sunflower seed balls, apples, and tangerines to hang from the branches.  They scatter nuts and breadcrumbs underneath. 

            Lovely watercolor paintings are accented with chalk and grease pencil.  This emphasis on the shadowy night contrasts with the lantern’s light, and a dusky sky filled with star shine.   A deer is caught in the flashlight’s beam. An owl’s voice and face deepen the sense of secrets in the forest darkness.

Together, the family sings songs and drinks hot chocolate. As this picture book unfolds, an annual tradition emerges as an important way to share.  It’s become an occasion to give each other a gift.  But it’s also an event created for the forest creatures.  Perhaps after reading this enchanting story, your family will decide to adopt this or another similar yearly tradition.

 

Manger selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins 

Illustrations by Helen Cann  

Eerdmans, $16.00 (hardcover) 

Interest Level: Junior Kindergarten – Grade 3 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

An ancient legend describes how, at midnight on Christmas Eve, animals are able to speak.  In this cheerful collection, featuring 15 talented poets, readers hear from rooster, sheep, horse, cat, mouse, dog, cow, wren, owl, fish, spider, llama and goat. 

Hopkins sets the scene in his introductory poem.  The concluding rhyme is a verse from the traditional carol, “The Friendly Beasts,” describing the donkey. Poems from Joan Bransfield Graham, Amy Ludwig VanDerwater, X.J.Kennedy, Jude Mandell, Marilyn Nelson, Jane Yolen, Ann Whitford Paul, Prince Redcloud, Rebecca Kai Dotlich, Michele Krueger, Alma Flor Ada and Alice Schertle are included.

Watercolor and collage beautifully illustrate each poem in glowing colors. 

The moonlit starry pages flash with movement and luster.  Expressive animal faces populate the pages and endpapers. A blazing comet appears on several pages, highlighting the not-so-silent night. 

This is the Stable by Cynthia Cotton 

Illustrated by Delana Bettoli 

Henry Holt, $6.99 (paperback) 

Interest Level:  Pre-Kindergarten – Grade1 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

This beautiful picture book, combined with gradually building text, tells the Nativity story.  Added to the familiar rhythm of “This is the house that Jack built” is a refrain, “the quiet stable, dusty and brown.” Pairing these two produces a gentle, musical rhyme pattern.

Mixed media paintings of animals, angels, shepherds, wise men, the newborn baby, parents, and the star also feature bright patterned borders.  Bettoli’s earth tones establish a sense of the desert.  Primary colors give life to expressive animal faces.  And skillful use of pastels reveals ethnic variety in the people.

This version of the visitors to the stable can also be sung to the melody of “The Friendly Beasts,” a traditional carol.  Simply told and well paced, this tale is a favorite of both children and the adults who enjoy it with them.

MORE HOLIDAY BOOKS

‘Twas Nochebuena: A Christmas Story in English and Spanish 

By Roseanne Greenfield Thong 

Illustrated by Sara Palacios  

Viking, $16.99 (hardcover) 

Interest Level: Junior Kindergarten – Grade 2 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

Christmas Wish for Corduroy based on the characters created by Don Freeman

Story by B. G. Hennessy 

Pictures by Jody Wheeler 

Viking, $16.99 (hardcover) 

Interest Level: Pre-Kindergarten – Grade 2 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

The Legend of Saint Nicholas by Anselm Grun 

Illustrated by Giuliano Ferri 

 Eerdmans, $16.00 (hardcover) 

Interest Level: Kindergarten – Grade 3 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)

And Then Comes Christmas by Tom Brenner

Illustrations by Jana Christy 

Candlewick Press, $15.99 (hardcover) 

Interest Level: Junior Kindergarten – Grade 2 

(This book may be purchased from local and online booksellers.)