Dominique Raccah

Source: School Library Journal Book Review Stars
Age Range: 11-18
Assessment of Quality: Poetry is meant to be read out loud; the CD accompanying this anthology gives readers the chance to listen to these poems from their own authors
Assessment of potential use: This anthology can be utilized for English class curriculum about poetry since it contains both classic work and contemporary poetry.
Assessment of appeal to children: The poetry selections are grounded in tangible experiences and places that tweens and teens are familiar with.… (más)

This is a collection of modern poetry written by students from various backgrounds. It is ideal for teaching poetry to high school students since it is written by people they can relate to. These poems are alternated with older classics making it a virtual treasure trove of poetry, perfect for comparing and contrasting in the classroom. The newer poems are often a reflection of older poems providing perfect material for poetry lessons and close reading. Students will find they can relate to many of the older poems as well as the new ones when they see how many of the poems connect intertextually. The CD of students reading their poems provides another way of looking at the poems as well to help students see what the author was thinking and feeling when they wrote their poems. A great way of getting students interested in poetry.… (más)

I memorized some poetry when I was in 4th grade. It was a class requirement, but I really enjoyed it. Unfortunately, the poetry I memorized were mainly limericks; anything that wasn’t was some bit of doggerel that I read in a joke book. I never got into serious poetry, much to my eventual chagrin.

My daughter enjoys poetry. Most of what she reads is Shel Silverstein-ish poetry; a cut above my limericks, but still light. And most of the poetry geared toward kids is like that — I really think that one reason that kids have such a hard time when the hit high school and start doing more serious poetry is that they’ve been conditioned to think of poetry in very limited terms. Going from “Where the Sidewalk Ends” to Silvia Plath can be a bit disconcerting.

I’m not writing this to diss Silverstein, so don’t even comment if that’s what you’re thinking. I enjoy his work, and have memorized more than a couple of his poems. Both of my kids love his stuff, and as I keep mentioning, it’s far better than the crap I used to read and memorize. But there is more to poetry, and it’s important for kids to learn that, as early as possible.

Thankfully, there is the Poetry Speaks series. These books show kids poetry that they can relate to, that is serious (sometimes rather dark) and beautiful and emotional. There is a wide range in poets; in Poetry Speaks Who I Am, you can read selections from well-known poets like Maya Angelou, Edgar Allen Poe, Emily Dickinson, and lesser-known poets as well. There is free verse side-by-side with iambic pentameter. There is diversity in style.

There is also a diversity in subject and theme. Some poems explore coming of age themes (like Phillip Schultz’s “33″ and “49,” about the experience of a bar mitzvah, or even Parneshia Jones’ “Bra Shopping”). Others are classic self-exploration or self-statement (Maya Angelou contributes the classic “Still I Rise,” and of course there is Frost’s immortal “The Road Not Taken”). Elise Paschen has done an outstanding job of selecting work for this volume.

And there is audio. The book comes with a CD featuring many of the poets reading their work. I’ve always enjoyed hearing poetry read more than reading it myself (unless I’m reading out loud — odd, I know). And I think this is the part of the book my daughter (8) enjoys the most. Even after I took the book to read myself before writing this review, she was still enjoying the CD, listening to the poems.

If you have kids, you should look into this series, and this book. It will teach your kids about poetry; about rhythm, rhyme, meter, and all of that, but also about emotion and expression. It will teach them about rules, and when it’s OK to break them. And it will teach them that there is a huge diversity of poetry, and not all of it is happy. They’ll learn that some of the best poetry is born out of sorry, or difficulty, and they may learn that they like writing the stuff themselves.… (más)