African American Poetry Review for Module 1

Photo retrieved from Amazon.com

A.  Bibliography

Alexander, Kwame. THE CROSSOVER. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014.
ISBN 9780544107717

B.   Review and Critical Analysis

THE CROSSOVER is an amazingly well-structured novel written in free-verse.  The novel presents various life themes and genuine life changes that families undergo as they grow together.  The novel is divided into six sections, including basketball quarters, with a graphic that accompanies the sections. The first section is called the Warm-Up, then the four Quarters, and the final section is called Overtime.  It is written from the first-person perspective of Josh, the main character of the novel.  The writing style took a few pages to adjust to, and the rhythm had to set in naturally.  As the reader "warms-up," the reading becomes almost musical and rhythmic.  The basketball terminology may take some adjusting to if the reader is not very articulate in basketball lingo. Alexander uses symbolism throughout the book, with the major symbol being the game of basketball.

Conversation in the novel is differentiated by italics and regular print.  This makes it easier to understand who is saying what.  Alexander defines numerous words presented in the novel in several ways, giving perspective to the word and how it relates to the story.  For example, he presents how the word profusely can be used to described an apology, and the way it can be used to describe a bleeding nose.  Alexander's presentation of words in this manner let the reader stop and look back in the novel for the word.  I found a consequence of this feature is that a second reading of the poem is far more powerful than the first reading.

The author uses the words of the some of the poems as visuals.  For example, the words appear to fall as the ball does, and the excitement of the game is shown with bigger and bolder words, and sometimes in all capital letters.  This feature feels like the electrifying highlights of a game on television, but may be a bit of a distraction until the reader adjusts to the style. However, this style may provide a middle school reader with enough play by play action to keep them in the reading game.  The poetry moves fast enough to keep the reader moving page to page, and delivers powerful emotional energy throughout the book.

In CROSSOVER, the Bell family is compromised of twin brothers, Josh and JB, and their parents. The middle school aged boys are phenomenal basketball players, and have a close and loving relationship with their father, mother, and each other,  Their mother is the assistant principal at their school, and the father does not work because of health reasons.   Alexander eludes in the beginning that the father suffers from major health ailments, which the reader finds out later is hypertension.  This health issue will ultimately change the course of the family's lives.  Although the parents argue at times over his health, the books insinuates a strong marriage behind closed doors.  The twin boys are in sync with each other, knowing each other's next move as twins often do.  This is even referenced to when they go to eat Chinese food and JB knows what Josh wants from the buffet without even asking him.  However, Josh later struggles with JB's interest in the new girl, as she pulls him away from his brother and basketball.

The family demonstrates a loving and healthy relationship, however, the father still breaks the rules when the mother isn't around.  The mother is continuously trying to instill  lessons to the boys.  "Boys with no self-control become men behind bars."  This is a powerful theme in the novel, as Josh gets suspended for throwing the basketball at JB's face and hurting him at a game.  This single action ends the banter and play between the boys for some time, as JB finds it difficult to forgive his brother of this mistake.  The deliberate game-like progression designed by Alexander  keeps the reader hooked and quickly leads to the conclusion, which must not be spoiled for the readers.

Young adults who find poetry books or novels unappealing may find new light in this novel.  Through its fast pages and touching themes, it is a book that will grasp every reader within the first few lines.  It is a contemporary novel that will surely change a poetry shy reader into a fan of novels written in verse.

C. Highlighted Poem to Support Critical Analysis

Dear Jordan

Without you

     i am empty

the goal 

     with no net

seems

    my life was

broken

    shattered

like puzzle pieces

    on the court.

i can no longer fit.

    can you

help me heal,

    run with me,

slash with me

    like we used to?

like two stars

    stealing the sun,

like two brothers

    burning up.

together.

P.S. I'm sorry.

In a middle school or high school class, this poem can be presented during character lessons.  As a coming of age novel, this particular poem highlights the ups and downs of sibling relationships.  The teacher can ask the following questions before reading the poem:

1.  Have you ever had an argument or physical altercation with a sibling?
2.  How did the relationship change after the argument or fight?
3.  Did you say sorry first, or did your brother or sister say it first?
4.  Why is it hard to say "I'm sorry" to a brother or sister?
5.  Is there a creative way you can think of to say you are sorry?

The teacher will then read the poem.  Discuss with the students some of the special qualities that exist between brothers and sisters.  Allow students to write an apology in their journals to someone they feel they may still owe an apology to.  It can be a sibling, friend, parent, or teacher.  Some students may want to share an apology they wrote, but it should not be a requirement.

The CROSSOVER is the winner of the 2015 Newbery Award and Kwame Alexander's website is an ideal accompaniment to his work.  Visit  http://www.bookinaday.org/ to learn more about this author.

Poetry Review for Hopkins Collection

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A.  Bibliography

Hopkins, Lee B.  AMERICA AT WAR. Ill. by Stephen Alcorn. New York, NY: McElderry Books, 2008.  ISBN 9781416918325

B.  Review and Critical Analysis

In this collection of poetry, Hopkins retells the story of American war history with a compilation of over 50 poems written by numerous poets, such as Ann Wagner and Cynthia Cotten.  As each poem is written by a different poet with a different viewpoint, each contains its own style.  The rhythms vary, and some of the poems contain rhyming while others do not.  Many of the poems contain imagery and metaphors, such as The Pony Chair by Tony Johnston and To You by Karla Kuskin.

In the poem, Missing, Cynthia Cotten presents a poem about a sister sending a care package to her sister during the Persian Gulf War.  Cotten captures the sad reality of the loneliness, and the heartache of possibly losing a loved during wartime.  Moreover, the change in women serving in the military comes alive in this poem.  In the poems of the the previous poems, only men were in true danger, however, with the Gulf War and Iraqi War, gender roles made a huge shift.

For young adults, this collection would make a wonderful accompaniment for a history class studying any U.S. war.  The poems bring a different perspective to what may be a hard concept for young adults to visualize or connect with.   As many of the poems are very touching and connect the reader through emotions, young readers may find them enjoyable.  In the introduction for the Iraq War segment, Staff Sergeant Dawayne Harterson's introduction is followed by the well known "Ashes, Ashes" poem so well known by many.  It certainly brings new ideas about the meaning of that common childhood song.

Stephen Alcorn provides thoughtful illustrations that are gentle, both in color and content.  Although there are many implications of death throughout the collection, Alcorn's illustrations are kind and remain calm throughout the collection.  Hopkins begins the collection with a Prologue, and the poetry is organized and presented through eight war eras. Hopkins provides a Table of Contents, an Introduction, an Prologue and EpilogueIt begins with The American Revolution, and moves through Iraq War.  In the last few pages of the collection, Hopkins provides acknowledgments for each of the poems included, an index of authors, and an index of titles, and an index of first lines.  The index of first lines is very convenient for quickly scanning the content and style of each poem.

C.  Poem Highlight from AMERICA AT WAR 

A portion from Epilogue: Vocabulary Lesson by Ann Wagner

We don't have wars.
We have
conflicts
campaigns
operations
escalations
missions
offensives
preemptive strikes.

We don't have soldiers.

We have
peace keepers
troops
servicemen
forces
coalitions
units.

This poem has wonderful potential for a vocabulary lesson prior to reading the poem.  The words from these poems could be written on index cards or other pre-created cards.  All of the words would be mixed up.  Students would be asked to group similar words together, based on their prior knowledge.  Students would then record their words lists into their Poetry Journal.  The teacher would then have students present or share their reasons for grouping their words the way they did. Finally, the teacher would present the poem, and students would check to see how closely they aligned their words to the poet's.  Students would discuss how they differed or mirrored the poem after hearing or reading it.  Additionally, students may discuss their thoughts on the word choices in social media and discuss other situations where media uses alternate vocabulary.

SCHOOL POETRY REVIEW FOR MODULE 1

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A. Bibliography

Salas, Laura Purdie. STAMPEDE: POEMS THAT CELEBRATE THE WILD SIDE OF SCHOOL. Ill. by Steven Salerno. New York, NY: Clarion Books, 2009.  ISBN 9780618914883

B. Review and Critical Analysis

The poems in this book are written in simple poetic rhyming verse.  The collection contains over fifteen poems written in a humorous fashion, and are intended for young readers. Salas delights the readers with charming poems, comparing school children to insects and animals by using similes and metaphors.  In the poem New Mouse, Salas illustrates the often lost feeling a child must feel in a “school maze,” and makes the imagery come to life with the illustrations by Steven Salerno.  It is easy for a child to relate to the feelings aroused by typical everyday school life.  Many components of a child's school day are touched upon in each of the poems.

The poems in the collection are very appealing to young readers and listeners.  Each page turn brings curiosity as to what new animal or insect a child will be compared to.  The illustrations highlight the poems, and it makes for a great read aloud for story time.  The children in the poems are illustrated to accompany the animal or insect, and the reader at times needs to study the illustrations to find the clues.  In Prickly, the girl’s hair resembles a porcupine, as her personality comes to life in the poem.  I like that the poems are quick and are easily understood by children, and the lighthearted delivery of the poetry by Salas.

Although the language remains simple, Salas does a great job in exposing children to similes and metaphors throughout the book.  It would make a great companion for teaching figurative language to young children.  Students can easily begin to think about how they, too, are in some way like one of the creatures from the book.  They can also reflect on the diverse behaviors they exhibit in the different locations of a school.

The poems are arranged in a very child friendly format. Each poem has a title, and none are longer than four stanzas. Each poem is also accompanied by its own illustration, done on watercolor paper and with gouache. The book does not contain a table of contents and does not feature an index. The author information and bibliographic information is found in the back of the book.


C. Poem Highlight from STAMPEDE

New Mouse

Go left, then right.
Wrong turns, dead ends.
Can't find my class,
I've got no friends.

Each hallway is
a hallway clone
Can't find my way
around alone.

A thousand halls,
a thousand ways,
I'm lost inside
this new school maze.

I chose to highlight New Mouse from the book because of its appeal to children entering a new school or campus.  It can be an overwhelming experience for kids transitioning to a new school or transitioning to their next campus, for instance, from fifth grade to middle school.  

On the first day of school, this would be an excellent choice for a read aloud at the carpet. First start a discussion about some of the different hallways in the school, and where the library is, the office, etc.  Draw a map as the children describe the different locations, and discuss what the map begins to resemble.  Encourage the students to realize that it looks like a maze, and that it is normal to feel lost at first.  After the discussion, read the poem to the students, and discuss what feelings they were able to connect to from the poem.