I'm Gonna Tell Mama I Want An Iguana by Tony Johnston

This book of poems is a different from the other ones I have read also. This one does not just contain poems that rhyme. It has different styles, and shows how spacing can play into the way a poem is read and interpreted. This book has a lot of short poems, that do not necessarily have anything that "make" them poems. I think this book has the ability to inspire children to believe that they can write poetry, because they can turn anything into a poem. Because of this factor, it reminds me of Love That Dog. Poetry is a great way that a lot of people express themselves, so I think a book like this can be very beneficial, because it does a great job of showing this, unlike many other children's poetry books. Although it is not on serious matters, it does show that there are different ways to write poetry and that poetry can be about your thoughts and feelings.

I Brought My Rat for Show-and-Tell and Other Funny School Poems By Joan Horton

The first poem in this book is great, but I really enjoyed all of the other ones as well. One of the poems is on cafeteria food, and how every Wednesday they get spaghetti that looks alive. I think all kids now the days that they need to bring sack lunches, because the food is questionable. I love the illustration for this poem. The girl is looking at the spaghetti in disbelieve, as it is smiling at her. Off in the corner is her lunchbox that she has vowed to bring every Wednesday so she doesn't have to eat the spaghetti that is alive, but she does not know that that is staring at her too! I think that this book of poems is great for all beginning and struggling readers because it uses very simple text, unlike the other books I read.

I Brought My Rat for Show-and-Tell and Other Funny School Poems By Joan Horton

This poem reminded me of the book Rotten Teeth that I blogged about a couple of weeks ago. In both books they are discussing what they are going to bring or brought to show-and-tell. I think that this poem has the ability to relate to a lot of kids, because show-and-tell is something we have all experienced, for better or for worse. I do not think that many kids would be able to talk about their rat getting lose in the school, but they can talk about how their hamster got out of it's cage at their house, or what they did bring for show-and-tell. I think this topic is so fun to talk about with kids, and this poem is a great way to start that conversation!

Bees, Snails, & Peacock Tails by Betsy Franco

I think this book of poems about animals and nature is great for young children. Not only is there wonderful rhyming throughout, but within them they include patterns and shapes. The poems all flow very nicely to each other, even though they are separate, distinct poems. This book is a Caldecott honor medalist, so the pictures are obviously great as well. This book is filled with great, fun information that would add to any lessons on poetry, shapes and patterns, and animals.

Hippopotamus Stew and Other Silly Animal Poems by Joan Horton

This book of poems has a poem about a different animal on each page. All of these poems are very fun and they rhyme. They each have a beautifully animated picture with them. The one negative about this book is that all of the poems rhyme, which may leave the impression on students that that is the only way to write poems. My favorite poem is about the elephant. It talks about how many tissues an elephant would use if it had a sniffly nose. I think children would find this concept very funny. I think that this book would definitely be a great addition to any classroom.

Love That Dog by: Sharon Creech

I think that Love That Dog by Sharon Creech is a good book. It is written as a boy is writing these poems everyday in class, and it turns into this really great story about a boy not wanting to do a "girl" activity, but turns out to love it in the end. I think this story resonates with a lot of people, especially with boys who love to cook or write poetry.

This book really reminded me of my eating habits, and lack of variety. When my fiance and I started dating I would only eat meat and potatoes. I had never tried any other "more cultured" food, nor did I want to. Slowly but surely I had acquired numerous new types of food into my normal diet. At first I thought it was OK, then it was pretty good once in a while, now I wish I could eat new foods everyday! Jack felt the same way about poetry, but after a while he learned how good he was at it, and how much he like it. I think this book has the ability to give kids the option, and courage to try new things

Year of Impossible Goodbyes by: Sook Nyul Choi

I was very interested in reading this book and read it very quickly, as So Far From the Bamboo Grove had spiked my interest in the World War II conflict. Going into this book I was feeling like everyone were losers in this war, because it seemed like everyone was getting tormented and killed by some other group. After reading this book, I felt like I had made more of a connection to the first book, but I am not sure why. I think it may have been because this book the mom is not as strong. She broke down for weeks when her father died and when they tried to escape she was taken away. The kids, who were very young, then had to fend for themselves and survive in madness with no money, no food, and no passports. This seemed so hopeless compared to the other story.

Also, the ending in this one happens pretty suddenly and it is not as in depth as So Far... Once they crossed the lines they were helped, but the Japanese kids still had to keep fighting and working to survive.

I think they are both great books to bring the realities of war and the dynamics of World War II into the classroom. There are so many different emotions and feelings that come up, that I am sure kids will formulate an opinion and their own responses to the books. They may be difficult things to talk about, but they are necessary.