A Planet is a Poem

Written by Amanda West Lewis

Illustrated by Oliver Averill

Kids Can Press

978-1-5253-0442-2

56 pp.

Ages 8-12

May 2024

 

It isn't always easy to blend science with art in a meaningful way. But Amanda West Lewis has elegantly and effectively used poetry to intertwine the teaching of different poetic forms with the teaching of the solar system and all its components in her latest book, A Planet is a Poem.

From A Planet is a Poem, written by Amanda West Lewis, illus. by Oliver Averill

In fold-out double spreads, Amanda West Lewis gives us a poem, a description of the type of poem it is, and an information page about the concept upon which it focuses. For example, the first poem, "Our Family: A Sonnet for the Solar System" opens onto a fold-out about the form of a sonnet called "Sonnet Sing" and "We're All Spinning Around the Sun" information page.

From A Planet is a Poem, written by Amanda West Lewis, illus. by Oliver Averill

This format continues to include an ode, a villanelle, a ballad, a persona poem, a sestina, a concrete poem, free verse, an acrostic, a companion poem, a prose poem, a cinquain, and hip-hop. Amanda West Lewis discusses rhyme and beats, sounds and imagery and metaphors, and patterns. Her exploration of all facets of poetry is comprehensive and well-illustrated in her own poems. Accompanying these poems and poetry teaching are concepts in astronomy that include everything from the solar system to each planet, and unusual celestial entities like Pluto and its moon Charon, the Kuiper Belt, and the asteroid Arrokoth.

 

But A Planet is a Poem is more than an anthology of poetry to teach forms and astronomy. It is an opportunity for young readers to become young writers themselves with Amanda West Lewis asking them to look within, and to the stars and planets, to write their own poems and investigate space. 

 

The content of poetry and astronomy is thorough and will surely become an exceptional teaching resource for both areas of study. But beyond content is the art of the writing, particularly in Amanda West Lewis's poems. Take, for example, the concrete poem for Jupiter, "Jupiter the Giant," that includes this reference to its Great Red Spot.

The Giant Red Spot 

Is Shrinking,

Tearing Off, Vanishing,

Into Spinning Clouds.

From A Planet is a Poem, written by Amanda West Lewis, illus. by Oliver Averill

Her poems are laden with information but also perspective and sensitivity. Whether it's through point of view or poetic devices, there is a sense of awareness and appreciation for something great and mysterious. UK illustrator Oliver Averill depicts that vastness of scope through digital images that show grandeur of space and the subtlety of its elements. They are large and complex, secretive, and yet celebrated. And though many illustrations are set in gorgeous midnight blue backgrounds, Oliver Averill gives us colour in the planets, rockets, and sunlight.

 

I pity the library technicians who will need to decide whether to catalogue A Planet is a Poem as a picture book (E), as a book about writing poetry (808.1), as Canadian poetry (819.11) or about the science of astronomy (520). It's a book that can be enjoyed from different perspectives and as a resource for teaching and learning across both science and language. Regardless of where it finds its shelf, A Planet is a Poem is as expansive and substantial as the premise upon which it is based, and sure to be checked out by both young readers and their teachers.

ninitohtênân / We Listen (Nôhkom series)

Written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson with Leona Morin-Neilson

Illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson

Groundwood Books

978-1-77306-859-6

24 pp.

Ages 3+

April 2024 

Caitlin Dale Nicholson's Nôhkom series honours the Cree grandmothers and elders who share their wisdom, their traditions, and their learning with younger generations. In ninitohtênân / We Listen, Caitlin Dale Nicholson, with translation by Leona Morin-Neilson, a teacher of Cree in BC, reflects on an outing with nôhkom during which the younger people watch and listen and learn.

From ninitohtênân / We Listen, written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson with Leona Morin-Neilson, illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson

There are few words in ninitohtênân / We Listen, though each phrase is told in both standard roman orthography and syllabic Cree, as well as English. The phrases are simple, taking us from "Nôhkom gets ready" and "We get ready"–phrases are paired to reflect what nôhkom does and then what the young people do–to a day out with a picnic and collecting the plant called Labrador Tea. It's a day of following and learning.

From ninitohtênân / We Listen, written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson with Leona Morin-Neilson, illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson

Even though the young people occasionally deviate from what nôhkom does, like playing in the water when their elders rest, the girls usually follow her lead, recognizing the value in her way of doing things. In that way, ninitohtênân / We Listen is very much a tribute to nôhkom and what she imparts to them in her traditional ways.

From ninitohtênân / We Listen, written by Caitlin Dale Nicholson with Leona Morin-Neilson, illustrated by Caitlin Dale Nicholson

The Nôhkom series from Caitlin Dale Nicholson is extraordinary in the depth of its esteem  for the contributions made by elders to younger generations, and the respect afforded them by their sharing of those traditions. As in the earlier books, nipêhon / I Wait and niwîcihâw / I Help, the text is minimal but powerful, even more so for the Cree in both standard roman orthography and syllabic forms. But, it is always Caitlin Dale Nicholson's artwork, acrylics on canvas, that ground the story in family, traditional customs, intergenerational relationships, and Indigenous culture. The family of multiple generations gathers for simple pleasures, but they are profound in their connections with each other and with the natural world as well as their Cree culture. (Recipes for tea and ointment made from the plant Labrador Tea are included.)

 

For young readers, ninitohtênân / We Listen allows us the privilege of a glimpse into a very special relationship and witness the learning that comes from that positive connection. It may not be dramatic or thundering but it is mighty, if you listen.

• • • • • • •

Nôhkom series

nipêhon / I Wait  (2017)

niwîcihâw / I Help (2018)

ninitohtênân / We Listen

Otis & Peanut: Forever and Ever

Words by Naseem Hrab

Drawings by Kelly Collier

Owlkids Books

978-1-77147-497-9

80 pp.

Ages 6-8

April 2024 

 

Like the classic early readers about Frog and Toad, Otis and Peanut have many stories to tell. The unlikely friendship of the long-haired guinea pig (Otis) and the naked mole rat (Peanut) is fodder for three more stories in Otis & Peanut: Forever and Ever that cover everything from cake to memories, gardening and absent sisters.

From Otis & Peanut: Forever and Ever, written by Naseem Hrab, illustrated by Kelly Collier

In the story titled "The Cake," Peanut surprises Otis with a luscious three-layer strawberry cake based on his sister Pearl's recipe. Though Peanut wants to dig in, Otis wonders what they are celebrating. Apparently, Peanut's answer of "celebrating cake with cake" doesn't cut it and is determined to save it for a special occasion. But would there ever be a good enough reason to eat cake?

From Otis & Peanut: Forever and Ever, written by Naseem Hrab, illustrated by Kelly Collier

The second story, "The Dream," has Peanut at home enjoying a breakfast of toast and jam when he discovers his last jar of strawberry jam made by Pearl. After eating, he is inspired to plant some strawberry seeds his sister had given him. After watching some kids play in the sprinkler and dreaming of when he and Pearl did the same, Peanut retrieves his own sprinkler to water his garden but to also reminisce and enjoy.

"The Collection" is Naseem Hrab's final story for Otis & Peanut: Forever and Ever, and says more about memories than the earlier chapters. While Peanut grieves the loss of his sister Pearl and finds himself remembering her in everything from baking to eating and playing, it is Otis who helps him to see the value in keeping memories as tangible objects. Otis himself keeps scrapbooks of memories and demonstrates to Peanut that, no matter how important the memories are, sometimes you can forget them. So, Peanut finds a way to keep his own memories, both happy and sad, safe and make new memories with his friend.

From Otis & Peanut: Forever and Ever, written by Naseem Hrab, illustrated by Kelly Collier

There is a gentleness to Naseem Hrab's stories of Otis and Peanut that invites young readers to see their own lives within the stories of the guinea pig and the mole rat. Children will be familiar with celebrating with cakes, planting a garden, playing in a sprinkler, and keeping bits and bobs of photos, ticket stubs, etc. as memories. They'll also know what it is to be a friend and have a friend. So, by nature of these stories, not only will they practise their reading and make connections between text and illustrations, they'll be making meaningful connections between the story and their own lives, learning about empathy, acceptance, cooperation and more.

Kelly Collier, who illustrated the first Otis & Peanut book, uses the same colour palette of turquoise and chartreuse with splashes of pink as she did in the first. It works to keep the overall effect uncomplicated but focused. Whether it's the cake or the jam and the garden or the keeping of memories, one emphasis is evident and not the background of detailed characters and settings or the jibber jabber of extraneous text. Together Kelly Collier and Naseem Hrab remember who their audience is and ensure that their reading and storytelling needs are met.

Because children have so much happening in their lives, whether it's a daily occurrence like picking clothes or reading books, or special events like a birthday party or performing at a recital, there are loads of stories that Naseem Hrab and Kelly Collier can share through Otis and Peanut. Whether it's to teach them about being a good friend, or to reflect the young lives of these readers, Otis and Peanut are there, as are we, to watch and learn. 

Otis & Peanut (2023)

Otis & Peanut: Forever and Ever (2024)

Rumie Goes Rafting

Written and illustrated by Meghan Marentette

Owlkids Books

978-1-77147-635-5

36 pp.

Ages 3-7

April 2024 

 

 

To a child, everything can become an adventure with a little imagination. But when the excitement takes over, sometimes safety is forgotten.

From Rumie Goes Rafting, written and illustrated by Meghan Marentette

Rumie roams the forest, picking up curious bits that draw his attention. There's a red string, a yellow bread clip, a spruce cone, and more that Rumie gathers in his wagon. His curiosity takes him to a stream where he plays with a twig and then a toy boat, but he is dismayed that nothing will float very far. A ladybug on a leaf gives him an idea and he suggests to his Uncle Hawthorne that they build a raft. What an idea!

From Rumie Goes Rafting, written and illustrated by Meghan Marentette

And so, the two saw and hammer and construct a beautiful raft with ribbons dangling from a mast. Uncle Hawthorne insists on a safety test run with life vests, but Rumie is so excited and even more so when the rains come in the night and swell the stream. Though he never intends to set off on their raft, Rumie gets the raft ready for testing once Uncle Hawthorne awakens. But that slow moving stream is no longer and the current grabs the raft and starts taking Rumie along for an unexpected ride.

From Rumie Goes Rafting, written and illustrated by Meghan Marentette

What begins as a new adventure in sailing becomes a dangerous excursion from which Rumie is saved by his uncle, learning that patience could have saved him from disaster.

With spring streams and rivers becoming swollen with melted snow and rainwater, Rumie Goes Rafting is a valuable cautionary tale of the unpredictability of waters. Water will always draw children with its movement and opportunity for play but without consideration of safety, it can become a danger quickly and unexpectedly. Rumie's curiosity and imagination are laudable and nurtured by his uncle. He loves the outdoors and building and collecting. But he is impetuous, as we can all be when excited about something, and it is only his uncle's quick thinking and safety measures that saved the little mouse. 

Meghan Marentette, who previously wrote The Stowaways, a middle-grade novel about a sailing family of mice, may have revisited her theme of adventurous mice in Rumie Goes Rafting but her approach is quite different here. It is different is message, in audience, and in format, and it all works. Meghan Marentette created three-dimensional scenes and characters which were photographed, giving her story rich texture and immersive illustrations. Look for the details in Uncle Hawthorne's tail, the patch in his vest, the cone on a string for a life buoy, the tiny, crocheted pillow, and a home decorated with love. (Meghan Marentette is obviously skilled in making miniature models.) Because of the realism, young children will be inspired to create their own scenes with their small stuffies, build rafts to travel in puddles, and tell stories of sailing, and maybe flying, adventures. With Rumie's imagination and curiosity, I foresee further adventures on the horizon.

From Rumie Goes Rafting, written and illustrated by Meghan Marentette

The Pig and the Dumpling

Written by Bonnie Johnstone

Illustrated by Veselina Tomova

Running the Goat, Books & Broadsides

978-1-998802081

40 pp.

Ages 4-8

March 2024 

 

In a tale from a Newfoundland outport, Bonnie Johnstone tells a story of a pig, a dumpling, and mayhem. It's a story that could only come from a small rural community in which everyone knows everyone else, and their actions are noted and intertwined for good and with misfortune.

From The Pig and the Dumpling, written by Bonnie Johnstone, illustrated by Veselina Tomova

After three fishermen tend to the garden belonging to the local convent, they are compensated with a hearty meal of stew with dumplings. As one of the men was not fond of dumplings, he tossed it towards the pig pen of Ignatius, Tulip, and their piglets. To his delight, Ignatius grabs that dumpling. To his horror, it scalds his throat and lodges there.

                                      The scalding hot lump

                                    of gluey dough

                                  plopped down

                                into his throat

                              like

                           a cork

                        in

                  a

            bottle.

In desperation, Ignatius makes a mad dash to the ocean, the ocean with icy cold water that would be sure to soothe his burning throat. But there is much activity in the outport, and it seems everyone is out and about and unknowingly in Ignatius's path. There's Tommy and Gussie who've gotten their kite stuck in Father McGettigan's rose bush. Then there's Father McGettigan and Reeni Puddicombe delivering pies for the church supper. Of course, Ignatius runs through and into Lizzie Carey's laundry hanging on the line, and, though he was able to miss the elderly Mrs. Maddigan and her cow Maude, the peddler Nellis was not as lucky. 

From The Pig and the Dumpling, written by Bonnie Johnstone, illustrated by Veselina Tomova

Ignatius's misfortune continues with more encounters with an accordion, drying fish, and a cart of kelp. And all for relief from a perilous dumpling.

Perhaps The Pig and the Dumpling is a cautionary tale about gluttony or perhaps about chewing one's food, but maybe it's just a story about a community in which everyone is an important part, from a pig at a convent's farm to the kelp farmers, children, the elderly, and everyone in between. It's a community of life and living, in which neighbours help each other, in which fish is dried and kelp is collected, and laundry is hung out to dry, and pies are made for a church supper. That little dumpling may have stoppered poor Ignatius's throat temporarily, but it gave him the opportunity to get out and interact with others in the community. His interactions may have been problematic for many, including poor Ignatius, but Bonnie Johnstone gives us a happy ending and a glimpse into a rural Newfoundland community as it may have been in the 1800s. (Bonnie Johnstone's "A Note About the Story" gives a little more background.)

From The Pig and the Dumpling, written by Bonnie Johnstone, illustrated by Veselina Tomova

Veselina Tomova's art is highly textured, not unlike the story, with acrylic brushstrokes on canvas giving movement to Ignatius's quest for cooling and chaos along that crusade. As she demonstrated in earlier books like Spirited Away: Fairy Tales of Old Newfoundland, PB's Comet and Daphne's Bees, Veselina Tomova knows how to get the atmosphere appropriate for the story, from light and airy, to dark and brooding, or silly and chaotic. With the colours, the shapes, the application of paint, Veselina Tomova gives The Pig and the Dumpling the realism with the nonsense and will have readers wondering whether there was an Ignatius to whom this really happened. With a quick visit to this outport of days gone by, they'll all know soon enough.

Sometimes I Feel Like an Oak

Written by Danielle Daniel

Illustrated by Jackie Traverse

Groundwood Books

978-1-77306-698-1

32 pp.

Ages 3+

April 2024

On Earth Day, I often like to review a book that speaks to me of the natural world and particularly our relationship with the environment. Too often, it's about our negative impact on the earth which, unfortunately, has had to take the brunt of poor choices with regards to overdevelopment, pollution, and burning of fossil fuels, just to name a few. With those choices have come deforestation and loss of habitat and species diversity, and global warming. We know all that, so today let's celebrate trees and what they mean to us by luxuriating in their diversity and their power. 

From Sometimes I Feel Like an Oak, written by Danielle Daniel, illustrated by Jackie Traverse

Danielle Daniel, author of Sometimes I Feel Like a Fox (2015) and Sometimes I Feel Like a River (2023), reminds us that we are not dissimilar to the living things outside of ourselves. Trees, like us, have life, reproduce, grow and heal, survive and support. They have their own personalities–should that be phytoalities?–that reflect everything from generosity to sensitivity, daring and resilience. With each tree highlighted, Danielle Daniel offers a poem about what a child feels and how it is expressed by each type of tree.

From Sometimes I Feel Like an Oak, written by Danielle Daniel, illustrated by Jackie Traverse

The first child feels like a maple, full and generous with the sap it shares. Still in winter, another child compares themselves to a birch with its peeling bark that brings hope. As we head into spring and then summer, there are cherry trees, cedars, aspens, spruce, and willows. Coming through all the seasons Danielle Daniel ends with the redwood, the ash, tamarack, oak, and pine. 

Sometimes I feel like a pine,

calm, still and gentle.

My branches cradle fresh-fallen snow,

filling me with peace.

From Sometimes I Feel Like an Oak, written by Danielle Daniel, illustrated by Jackie Traverse

Sometimes I Feel Like an Oak may be a contemplative picture book about making connections between trees and feelings, told through verse, but it feels like literary forest bathing. (Check out some online videos for examples of this practice.) Danielle Daniel reminds us that trees are living and show us the best ways we can live, by being courageous and peaceful, optimistic and strong. She speaks of her Algonquin ancestors who appreciated trees as "sentient beings with spirits who can feel things." For those who are empathetic to the feelings of non-human entities, Sometimes I Feel Like an Oak validates our connection with other living things, and perhaps even some non-living things, and Danielle Daniel shows us why we might be making those connections. (Personally, I have always felt a kinship with cedars and Danielle Daniel's poem helps me see why, especially as a child reads beneath the tree's limbs.)

 

Jackie Traverse, who is Ojibway from Lake St. Martin First Nation, uses her acrylic and gouache art to project the Indigenous backgrounds of both author and artist. There are dots that are reminiscent of beadwork, and swirls of lines hinting at a Woodland basis, but Jackie Traverse's illustrations are not wholly of any one style. Her art reflects her heritage, and that of Danielle Daniel, but it is also completely her own, blending realism with that heritage. Each tree is distinct in foliage and stature, bark and morphology, but Jackie Traverse gives us more with her children, the landscapes, and the spirit in the art.

From Sometimes I Feel Like an Oak, written by Danielle Daniel, illustrated by Jackie Traverse

On this Earth Day, let's celebrate our connections with the natural world, and particularly trees, with Danielle Daniel and Jackie Traverse's Sometimes I Feel Like an Oak. You'll feel better for having done so. 

I Am a Rock

Written by Ashley Qilavaq-Savard

Illustrated by Pelin Turgut

Inhabit Media

978-1-77227-475-2 

28 pages 

Ages 3-5

April 2024

Never has a rock been less of an insentient thing than in Ashley Qilavaq-Savard's I Am a Rock. For this child and his mother, this pet rock feels, sees, hears, and experiences all the seasons and life of an Arctic landscape, with or without its child by its side.

 

As a boy prepares for bed, a time open to great inquisition, Pauloosie asks his mother, "Anaana, what would it be like if rocks were alive?" as his adorable pet rock, Miki Rock, rests alongside him. With a playful voice and great wisdom, his mother answers him.

From I Am a Rock, written by Ashley Qilavaq-Savard, illustrated by Pelin Turgut

First, his mother tells of the rock watching as animals feed and make homes with the changing seasons. There are foxes and ptarmigan, belugas, and char. But there is more than just watching. There is also listening.

From chirps to howls to

beating hooves and squeaks,

I can hear them all.

From I Am a Rock, written by Ashley Qilavaq-Savard, illustrated by Pelin Turgut

And feeling? Miki Rock feels everything from the snow that blankets it to "the joy of the sun's warm kiss."

From I Am a Rock, written by Ashley Qilavaq-Savard, illustrated by Pelin Turgut

Finally, Miki Rock acknowledges that, though it can see, hear, and feel, it could not fly, run or walk until Pauloosie picked it up.

 

As I write this review, I hear Simon & Garfunkel's 1965 song with the same title but know their message is completely opposite to that of Ashley Qilavaq-Savard's book. While they sang of closing oneself off for protection, Ashley Qilavaq-Savard gives us a story of companionship and feeling that speaks to consciousness and awareness. Miki Rock is as sentient as we are. It may not be able to grow or to move (or can it?) but its appreciation for what goes on around it is evident. It senses warmth and cold and feels excitement and joy. It may be Pauloosie's Anaana who is giving that life to Miki Rock but, as a reader of I Am a Rock, I am convinced, as I'm sure Pauloosie is, that life exists within that rock.

 

If Ashley Qilavaq-Savard's words don't convince you, pair them with Turkish illustrator Pelin Turgut's artwork. Between Miki Rock's expressive face, which is limited to two specks for eyes and a crack for a smile, as well as orange lichen cheeks and a tuft of "hair" and landscapes of snowy mountains, frozen lakes, northern lights, and bright Arctic flora, Pelin Turgut gives us a rock that embraces its "life."

 

From I Am a Rock, written by Ashley Qilavaq-Savard, illustrated by Pelin Turgut

We may know logically that rocks don't feel anything but isn't fiction supposed to help us imagine different worlds and reach beyond the rational into something else? With the special companionship Pauloosie gets from Miki Rock, he already knows that a rock can be more than a fixed object. (A reading of I Am a Rock would be a fabulous lesson to teach the characteristics of living things.) Courtesy of his Anaana, Pauloosie now knows even more about his pet.