About this blog

This blog will consist of my personal literary reviews of poetry books for a TWU graduate class, Poetry for Children and Young Adults.

Monday, April 21, 2014

Joyful Noise

Poems for Two Voices
by Paul Fleischman
illustrated by Eric Beddows

Fleischman, Paul. Joyful Noise : Poems for Two Voices. Illustrated by Eric Beddows. N.p.: Harper and Row, 1988.
ISBN 0060218533

This amazing collection of poems is meant to be read out loud by two people. Paul Fleischman writes the poems in side-by-side parts that two people will read individually and simultaneously. Each poem features characteristics and habits of 14 insects. Some insects included in the book are mayflies, book lice, cicadas, and honeybees. Readers will enjoy the figurative language and detailed illustrations that Fleischman and Beddows have created for these musical duets. Some poems have a touch of humor while others have a more solemn tone. Readers of all ages will adore this fascinating guide to the insect world.

Fleischman, the poet and Beddows, the illustrator come together again in this collection of insects. Before this compilation they worked together on I am Phoenix which Joyful Noise is a companion book to. These two artists definitely compliment each other's talents.

This book provides readers with a table of contents and a note from the author, all before the poems begin. The note is extremely helpful in explaining how the poems are to be read. Joyful Noise is a collection of poems about insect and does not represent an overall story, so it has a distinct theme but no concrete sequence. Beddows' black and white pencil drawings can be described as soft, delicate, strong, and detailed. Each poem is excellently matched with one to two illustrations of the insects represented in the poem.

One poem I would highlight from this book is "Book Lice". I imagine this poem being used in a poetry break for enjoyment and a good representation of performance poetry with two voices. With the content being about book lice, it would be good for the librarian to join the classroom teacher in performing this poem to a class. The presenters need to make sure and have fun with this using props and even costumes to enhance the students enjoyment.

Book Lice
by Paul Fleischman
(excerpt from beginning)

I was born in a
fine old edition of Schiller
                                            While I started life
                                             in a private eye thriller
We're book lice                    We're book lice
who dwell                             who dwell
in these dusty bookshelves.    in these dusty bookshelves.
Later I lodged in
Scott's works--volume 50
                                             While I passed my youth
                                              in an Agatha Christie

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