From acrostic to ballads; haiku to rhymes, these books place words within lyrical lines
A Poke in the I: a collection of concrete poems
Author: Paul B. Janeczko (selected by)
Illustrator: Chris Raschka
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Recommended Age Range: 6 to 9
Awards: An ALA Notable Children’s Book
Book of Questions/Libro De Las Preguntas
Author: Pablo Neruda (translated by Sara Lissa Paulson)
Illustrator: Paloma Valdivia
Publisher: Enchanted Lion Books (Bilingual)
Recommended Age Range: 5 to 12
Website
A stunning work, this picture book version of Pablo Neruda’s Book of Questions provides many of the poet’s original poems, inviting wonder and reflection about our world.
BookSpeak! Poems About Books
Author: Laurie Purdie Salas
Illustrator: Josée Bisaillon
Publisher: Clarion Books
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Awards: Minnesota Book Award; NCTE Notables; Eureka! Gold Medal; Bank Street Best Books; Librarians’ Choice; Honor Book – Gelett Burgess Award; White Ravens; Nerdy Book Award; One of Book Riot’s 50 Must-Read Poetry Books for Kids
Website
Castle of Books
Author: Bernard Clavel
Illustrator:Yan Nascimbene
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 11
This book is a terrific story about one little boy’s big dream – to build a castle with – of course – books. “Borrowing” from his poet father’s enormous collection, the author creates a work that combines a boy’s dream, a father’s poem, and just the right amount of words to make a beautiful and heartfelt story.
Doodle Dandies: Poems That Take Shape
Author: J. Patrick Lewis
Illustrator: Lisa Desimini; with design and typography by Ann Bobco and Lisa Desimini
Publisher: Scholastic (Paperback)
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Awards: A Junior Library Guild Selection
Emma’s Poem: The Voice of the Statue Liberty
Author: Linda Glaser
Illustrator: Claire A. Nivola
Publisher: Sandpiper, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Website
In 1883, Emma Lazarus wrote the words that gave voice to the Statue of Liberty: “…Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free…” This is the story of the writer who composed these words, not only to help bring Lady Liberty to our shores, but to provide comfort, and a new home, to those seeing them for the first time.
Awards: Jane Addams Children’s Book Award; Junior Library Guild selection; A Sydney Taylor Honor Book; Oppenheim Toy Portfolio – Gold Medal Book; Amelia Bloomer Project best feminist children’s books
Enormous Smallness: A Story of E.E. Cummings
Author: Matthew Burgess
Illustrator: Kris Di Giacomo
Publisher: Enchanted Lion Books
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
An incredibly creative biography about an incredibly creative poet who never lost his childlike wonder about the world around him.
Awards: An ALA Notable Book; A Boston Globe Best Book of 2015; A Huffington Post Best Picture Book on Biography for 2015; A 2016 Notable Children’s Books in the English Language Arts; Booklist’s Lasting Connections 2015; the Washington Post’s “Best Children’s Books of 2015”
Jazz Day: The Making of a Famous Photograph
Author: Roxanne Orgill
Illustrator: Francis Vallejo
Recommended Age Range: 8 to 12
Website
Awards: A Junior Library Guild Selection; Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Best Picture Book 2016; The New York Society Library’s New York City Book Award 2016; Parents’ Choice Gold Award for Nonfiction; ALA Notable Book, All Ages Category; Center for the Study of Multicultural Children’s Literature Best Books of 2016; Publishers Weekly Best Books of 2016; School Library Journal Best Books of 2016; Kirkus Review Best Middle-Grade Books of 2016; The Washington Post Best Children’s and Young Adult Books of 2016; National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Notable Poetry Book; New York Public Library Top Ten of the Best 100 Books for Kids 2016; Chicago Public Library Best Books of 2016
Poem in Your Pocket
Author: Margaret McNamara
Illustrator: G. Brian Karas
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade Books, an Imprint of Random House Children’s Books
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Mr. Tiffin’s class is back! And this time, they’re learning about poetry. When one little girl can’t create the ideal poem, she discovers that it’s creativity, not perfection, that makes something beautiful. In the same style as How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin? and the apple orchard riddle, this work is so much more than a story – it is a life lesson, and a poetry class, wrapped up between the covers of a wonderful book.
Santa Clauses: Short Poems from the North Pole
Author: Bob Raczka
Illustrator: Bob Raczka
Publisher: Carolrhoda Books
Recommended Age Range: 5 to 9
Website
Santa writes poetry? He does in this book! Not only that, but who knew that Santa counts down to Christmas just like the rest of us? ☺
In these wonderful poems, we watch Santa get ready for this holiday – we even get a peek at the elves!
Awards: NCTE Notable Poetry List 2015; Junior Library Guild Selection
Science Verse
Author: Jon Scieszka
Illustrator: Lane Smith
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Recommended Age Range: 7 to 10
Awards: ALA Notable Book; New York Public Library 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing; Parents’ Choice Award
Website
The White Cat and the Monk: A Retelling of the Poem “Pangur Ban”
Author: Jo Ellen Bogart
Illustrator: Sydney Smith
Publisher: Groundwood Books, House of Anansi Press
Recommended Age Range: 4 to 8
Awards: Governor General’s Award, Finalist; New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Book, 2016; Brain Pickings Best Children’s Books of 2016; A Bank Street College of Education Best Children’s Book of the Year; School Library Journal Best Books of 2016, Picture Books; NCTE Notable Poetry List 2017; 2017 Capitol Choices, Seven to Ten; 2017 USBBY Outstanding International Book List, Grades 6-8