To continue our monthly series of book lists for children and teens, the Washington Talking Book & Braille Library would like to recommend the following titles:
April, 2006 -- Read Poems Together! Selected Poetry Books for All Ages
The Llama Who Had No Pajamas by Mary Ann Hoberman. Poems about swings, birthdays, twirling until dizzy, insects, rain, snow, brothers and babies, and animals. Cassette book RC 53635.
The Book of Pigericks: Pig Limericks by Arnold Lobel. Thirty-eight original, exuberant limericks about all manner of pigs. Braille book BRW 468.
The Random House Book of Mother Goose, edited by Arnold Lobel. A comprehensive collection of more than 300 nursery rhymes including such well-known verses as Little Miss Muffet and Humpty Dumpty, as well as less familiar rhymes. Cassette book RC 26342.
The Twentieth Century Children's Poetry Treasury, edited by Jack Prelutsky. More than 200 poems by authors such as e.e.cummings, Roald Dahl, Langston Hughes, Robert Frost, Myra Cohn Livingston, Ogden Nash, and Dr. Seuss. Cassette book RC 50086.
The Oxford Book of Children's Verse in America, edited by Donald Hall. Poems arranged chronologically from Native American cradle songs, Colonial alphabet rhymes, and contemporary pieces. Poets include Emily Dickinson, Carl Sandburg, T.S. Eliot, Ogden Nash, and Sandra Cisneros. Cassette book RC 50546.
The Pelican Chorus and Other Nonsense by Edward Lear. Three humorous tales in verse. Cassette book RC 42464.
My America : A Poetry Atlas of the United States by Lee Bennett Hopkins. Collection of poems depicting the everchanging landscape of the United States , its people, and its natural wonders. Cassette book RC 52592.
Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein. Timeless, humorous poems. Braille books BRW 491 and BR 11502; Cassette book RC 35732.
The Complete Poems of Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne. Originally written to entertain the author's son, Christopher Robin. Cassette book RC 51545.
April, 2006 -- Recommended Poetry for Middle School and High School Students
19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East by Naomi Shihab Nye. Sixty poems reflect Nye's affection for the Middle East and her feelings as an Arab American who fervently wishes for peace. The collection was prompted as solace for the September 11, 2001, tragedies. Cassette book RC 55344.
Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes. Students at a Bronx high school reveal their innermost thoughts, dreams, and fears through rap, free verse, and rhymes. Cassette book RC 55776.
Make Lemonade by Virginia Euwer Wolff. LaVaughn takes a desperately needed part-time job baby-sitting for a single teen mother. Written in free verse. Cassette book RC 40705.
The Iliad by Homer. The Greek epic poem written during the eighth century B.C. Focuses on Achilles' withdrawal from battle and its disastrous effects on the Greek campaign. Cassette book RC 51266.
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Pearl, and Sir Orfeo translated by J.R.R. Tolkien. Tolkien's translation of the fourteenth-century poem about a young knight who must prove his valor when confronted with temptations. Cassette book RC 56740.
The Harlem Reader edited by Herbie Boyd. Essays, articles, short stories, and poetry by Malcolm X, Sidney Poitier, Langston Hughes, Maya Angelou, and others. Cassette book. RC 57319.
The Essential Haiku: Versions of Basho, Buson, and Issa edited by Robert Hass. Introduction to three masters of the Japanese haiku tradition. Biographical sketches of each poet are followed by representative selections of his work .Cassette book RC 53154.
The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror edited by Ellen Datlow. More than 40 stories and poems, from fairy tales to gothic horror, by Stephen King, Ursula K. Le Guin, Neil Gaiman, and others. Cassette book RC 59030.
Kiss Off: Poems to Set You Free by Mary D. Esselman and Elizabeth Ash Velez. Collection of poems for the newly jilted and for people "suffering from loss, disappointment, or that general Hamlet-ish feeling...trying to find their way back to happiness." Cassette book RC 57837.
Check out the Library of Congress Poem-a-Day website for high school students.