Betsy R. Rosenthal

"Do you ever wonder
what animals do
when they gather in groups
of more than two?"

In rhyming text, a tower of giraffes observes a raft of otters, a host of sparrows invites a stand of flamingos to sit, and a troop of kangaroos sells cookies. A fun exploration of collective nouns! And when they all get together, what's it's called? LOUD!

There is a glossary (a bit hard to read, between the font and the green painted and textured background), but no source notes. The illustrations appear to be painted on linen, perhaps with some collage elements.… (más)

A little girl goes through all the little things, living and not, that makes up her home. Reading this poetry book, I felt an overwhelming sense of nostalgia. She describes each thing in her home as if it were alive and talking, from a welcome mat to the vacuum cleaner her family uses. It brought me back to my childhood, when I was little and would make up these grand stories and everything seems so much more magical. The author really captures what a home is and what it can mean to the person in it. The illustrations and the way that some words are formed into what they are describing adds to the carefree childlike mood that the story creates. This would be a great book to read in a classroom when introducing poetry and poetic devices as there are many throughout.… (más)