The 20th Century Children’s Poetry Treasury by Jack Prelutsky (PDF)

Description

Until this century, most children’s poetry was either syrupy sweet or overblown and didactic, and tended to talk down to its readers. Contemporary children’s poets have thrown all that condescension and moralizing out the window, and write with today’s real child in mind.- from the Introduction by Jack PrelutskyHere in one gloriously illustrated volume are 211 wonderful poems that represent the best this century has to offer. From sibling rivalry, school, monsters, food, and just plain silliness, to such ageless themes as the seasons, Who am I?, and the many moods of childhood, this is a collection that begs to be read aloud and shared with the whole family. The poems, from every decade of this century, showcase 137 famous poets.Selected by Jack Prelutsky, America’s leading children’s poet, and illustrated by award-winning watercolorist Meilo So, this useful and beautiful gift is a splendid way to end the century — or start a new one. Truly a book that families will cherish long after the millennium excitement is over, The 20th-Century Children’s Poetry Treasury is a joyous companion volume to the best-selling The 20th-Century Children’s Book Treasury.This book has been selected as a Common Core State Standards Text Exemplar (Grades K-1, 2-3, Poetry) in Appendix B.

User’s Reviews

Editorial Reviews: Amazon.com Review “I objurgate the centipede,/ A bug we do not really need,” writes Ogden Nash. Carl Sandburg hums and strums, while pages later, William Jay Smith compares a toaster to a silver-scaled dragon. And of course A.A. Milne must add his two cents’ worth, “tiddely pom, tiddely pom.” What a labor of love! Children’s poet and anthologist Jack Prelutsky has collected 211 of his favorite poems by 137 poets, representing the best of verse from each decade of the 20th century. “Until this century, most children’s poetry was either syrupy sweet or overblown and didactic, and tended to talk down to its readers,” Prelutsky writes in his introduction. “Contemporary children’s poets have thrown all that condescension and moralizing out the window, and write with today’s real child in mind.” What’s in this anthology for today’s child? Food fights, outer space, animals, noses, monsters, sports, and sibling rivalry. Each of award-winning illustrator Meilo So’s spectacular watercolor-splashed spreads reflects a theme: one buggy watercolor romp is surrounded by Deborah Chandra’s “Cricket,” Walter R. Brooks’s “Ants, Although Admirable, Are Awfully Aggravating,” and Robert Frost’s “Blue-Butterfly Day.” Five nocturnal poems nestle into a moonlit cityscape. Four music-related poems, from Bruce Lansky’s “My Violin” to X.J. Kennedy’s “The Girl Who Makes the Cymbals Bang,” burst from So’s cacophonous paintings. This excellent collection, a companion to The 20th Century Children’s Book Treasury, belongs on every poetry lover’s bookshelf. Prelutsky, creator of The New Kid on the Block, The Dragons Are Singing Tonight, and more than 30 other poetry books, has perfect pitch. (Click to see a sample spread. Illustrations copyright 1999 by Meilo So. Permission of Alfred A. Knopf.) (All ages) –Karin Snelson From Publishers Weekly For this companion to The 20th Century Children’s Book Treasury, Prelutsky combed more than 4000 poetry volumes to select 211 poems by 137 poets. His sampling includes established poets like Langston Hughes, Shel Silverstein and e.e. cummings, but, to Prelutsky’s credit, not necessarily their best-known works. The overriding mood is rollickingly upbeat, uncharacteristic for a form renowned for its adeptness at expressing moments of grief or loneliness. Hats off to So (The Beauty of the Beast, with Prelutsky), who visually holds the anthology together. Her people are engagingly limber, her animals unmatched: for instance, she evokes the fitful movements of a squirrel with a few calligraphic strokes, and her wet-on-wet technique suggests the fluffy texture of a kitten’s fur or the speed of leaping salmon. In one spread, she ingeniously accommodates eight bug poemsAfrom poets as diverse as Ogden Nash and Valerie Worth; the poems themselves appear to flit about a central image of two children nearly hidden in a field of wildflowers. She connects four stand-alone poems in another spread (“A Hippopotamusn’t” by J. Patrick Lewis and “The Click Clacker Machine” by Donna Lugg Pape are two of them) with a unified palette of pinks and lavenders. Its unvarying tone notwithstanding, this eye-catching collection is likely to lure both future fans of verse and poetry devotees. All ages. (Sept.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Library Journal Grade 1-6-This volume, described in Prelutsky’s introduction as representative of the “scope and variety of children’s verse produced in the twentieth century,” contains 211 poems by 137 poets. Some are well known, such as Shel Silverstein, Karla Kuskin, and Prelutsky himself. Some have written mainly for adults, e.g., John Updike, Langston Hughes, and e. e. cummings. Lesser-known and more recently published poets, such as Janet Wong, Deborah Chandra, and Nikki Grimes, are included as well. The greatest number are from the United States. While all of these selections have been published elsewhere, the format and illustrations in this collection give them new life. Poems are presented in unlabeled small groups that cross each double-page spread. Some of these groupings are clearly understood from their content, such as those on the seasons or on insects. Others require readers to think about common threads or themes as they read and study the illustrations, such as the cluster of poems on ways of creating. In another grouping, Prelutsky pairs poems of bats and mice with a poem about creatures who see better at night, calling attention to their shared physical characteristics. So’s watercolor illustrations are, by turn, impressionistic, childlike, silly, and serious, as called for by the tone of the poems featured. Sometimes the artist creates one unifying illustration across the spread, such as a cityscape at night that features all types of light found in the group of poems presented there. A splendid collection.Barbara Chatton, College of Education, University of Wyoming, Laramie Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. From the Inside Flap “Until this century, most children’s poetry was either syrupy sweet or overblown and didactic, and tended to talk down to its readers. Contemporary children’s poets have thrown all that condescension and moralizing out the window, and write with today’s real child in mind.”- from the Introduction by Jack PrelutskyHere in one gloriously illustrated volume are 211 wonderful poems that represent the best this century has to offer. From sibling rivalry, school, monsters, food, and just plain silliness, to such ageless themes as the seasons, Who am I?, and the many moods of childhood, this is a collection that begs to be read aloud and shared with the whole family. The poems, from every decade of this century, showcase 137 famous poets.Selected by Jack Prelutsky, America’s leading children’s poet, and illustrated by award-winning watercolorist Meilo So, this useful and beautiful gift is a splendid way to end the century — or start a new one. Truly a book that families will cherish long after the millennium excitement is over, The 20th-Century Children’s Poetry Treasury is a joyous companion volume to the best-selling The 20th-Century Children’s Book Treasury. From the Back Cover “Until this century, most children’s poetry was either syrupy sweet or overblown and didactic, and tended to talk down to its readers. Contemporary children’s poets have thrown all that condescension and moralizing out the window, and write with today’s “real child in mind.”- from the Introduction by Jack Prelutsky Here in one gloriously illustrated volume are 211 wonderful poems that represent the best this century has to offer. From sibling rivalry, school, monsters, food, and just plain silliness, to such ageless themes as the seasons, Who am I?, and the many moods of childhood, this is a collection that begs to be read aloud and shared with the whole family. The poems, from every decade of this century, showcase 137 famous poets. Selected by Jack Prelutsky, America’s leading children’s poet, and illustrated by award-winning watercolorist Meilo So, this useful and beautiful gift is a splendid way to end the century — or start a new one. Truly a book that families will cherish long after the millennium excitement is over, The 20th-Century Children’s Poetry Treasury is a joyous companion volume to the best-selling The 20th-Century Children’s Book Treasury. About the Author For 30 years, Jack Prelutsky’s inventive poems have inspired legions of children to fall in love with poetry. His outrageously silly poems have tickled even the most stubborn funny bones, while his darker verses have spooked countless late-night readers. His award-winning books include Tyrannosaurus Was a Beast, The Dragons Are Singing Tonight, The Random House Book of Poetry for Children, and The Beauty of the BeastWhile attending a Bronx, New York, grade school, Prelutsky took piano and voice lessons and was a regular in school shows. Surprisingly, Prelutsky developed a healthy dislike for poetry due to a teacher who “left me with the impression that poetry was the literary equivalent of liver. I was told it was good for me, but I wasn’t convinced.” In his early twenties, Prelutsky spent six months drawing imaginary animals in ink and watercolor. One evening, he wrote two dozen short poetry verses to accompany each drawing. A friend encouraged him to show them to an editor, who loved his poems (although not his artwork!) and urged him to keep writing. Prelutsky listened and he is still busy writing.Jack Prelutsky lives on Mercer Island in Washington with his wife, Carolynn. Meilo So’s first collaboration with Jack Prelutsky was the ALA Notable Book The Beauty of the Beast: Poems from the Animal Kingdom, of which The New York Times Book Review wrote: “Meilo So does enchantingly unreal paintings: whimsical watercolors made with a wet-on-wet technique that preserves the spontaneity of her hand gestures. In very few brush strokes, she captures the essence of organisms from stallions to sea horses. Yet the images themselves are abstract, almost calligraphic pictograms.” Her most recent book is Tasty Baby Belly Buttons by Judy Sierra. Meilo So was born in Hong Kong and now lives in England with her husband, who is also an artist. Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. “We Are Plooters”We are Plooters,We don’t care,We make messesEverywhere,We strip forestsBare of trees,We dump garbageIn the seas.We are Plooters,We enjoyFinding beautyTo destroy,We intrudeWhere creatures thrive,Soon there’s littleLeft alive.Underwater,Underground,Nothing’s safeWhen we’re around,We spew poisonsIn the air,We are Plooters,We don’t care.-Jack PrelutskyCopyright © 1993 by Jack Prelutsky. Used by permission of the author, who controls all rights.”Where Are You Now?”When the night begins to fallAnd the sky begins to glowYou look up and see the tallCity of light begin to grow –In rows and little golden squaresThe lights come out. First here, then thereBehind the windowpanes as thoughA million billion bees had builtTheir golden hives and honeycombsAbove you in the air.-Mary Britton MillerFrom All Aboard by Mary Britton Miller. Copyright © 1958 by Pantheon Books, Inc. Reprinted by permission of Pantheon Books, a division of Random House, Inc. Read more

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐My five year old and I enjoy this book very much. Since poetry was such an enjoyable part of my own childhood I wanted to find a special selection for her as well. This one really fits the bill and we turn to it regularly at bedtime. The poems are organized loosely by theme on the various pages: food poems, animals, noises, summer, faces, and etc etc. Many of the poems are really funny and have wonderful sounds, rhythms and topics that speak to the child’s inner poet. For instance, the Hippopotamustn’t, a poem by a child with a cold, and a circular poem that goes around and around on the page are some of my daughter’s favorites which she herself has partially memorized and asks for with enthusiasm.Some of the criticisms I read in these reviews are of the illustrations and that it has a smaller number of poems than some anthologies. Personally I like the illustrations. They are very colorful and loose and take equal billing on the page with the words. They help keep my child’s imagination rolling through the many poems on the page. I also find the number of poems more than sufficient for our needs. There is a huge range of subjects and so far, every time we have ever said “I wonder if there’s a poem about X–” when we go to the index, sure enough there is a poem with that exact name.We are still discovering new poems.

⭐Beautifully written and illustrated. Has been passed between both of my children and will go on to my grandchildren when the time comes. Great selection of poems and the illustrations are wonderful.

⭐This is a great way to introduce poetry to your kids. I’ll admit, when I was younger, I thought of poetry as something only old people wrote and read. This collection makes poetry fun (and well, not old!). I don’t feel like I’m reading a textbook to my preschool aged kids, as I have felt with other anthologies. It includes both classic and modern poetry representing a broad range of poetry styles. There are fun and bright illustrations on every page. I like the selections from this collection as much as the selections in Jack Prelutsky’s other anthology, The Random House Book of Poetry for Children. A few things that make these collections different from one another is that this collection is shorter and the illustrations are different (both books have great illustrations that are totally different styles, but these illustrations are more colorful). My family has both this book and the above mentioned Random House collection and they are equally loved!

⭐Great book for kids

⭐I bought this book so my 7 year old and I could read kid-level poetry. The poems are entertaining, provide a good challenge for young readers, and fun for both of us. Because poetry is usually rhythmic, I use this book to help my daughter concentrate on each word and not skip any.

⭐Grandchildren love to be read to. This is a good book to read over time to them. Lots of topics and variety.

⭐For years I have given books, inscribed with the date and occasion, to children in the hopes that they will enjoy reading them for years. For a recent baby shower I chose The 20th Century Children’s Poetry Treasury since it contains both traditional and contemporary poems. In addition it is very colorful. The young mother who received it was delighted.

⭐I bought this book for my new grandson last year, and he loved it from very early on. Today I read it to him before nap, and it still charms, even me! It is filled with delightful poems, and the art work is equally enchanting. I highly recommend it to all!

⭐The book contains some nice poetry but not I wouldn’t call it a treasury. The book wasn’t as thick as I expected so didn’t contain as many poems as I personally thought it should. A massive positive for buying (and why I kept the book) is because every single poem is beautifully illustrated.

⭐Would make a beautiful gift.

⭐Liked everything

⭐Such a beautiful book that’s worth it to keep life long time!

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