Poetry Week

Something About America by Maria Testa
This book was a prime example of the beauty of simplicity. Written in a series of short poems, the narrator of Something About America describes her life as a refugee, who--along with her family--has fled her home of Kosova, Yugoslavia and relocated in America. Although a large portion of her skin is scarred with burn marks, the narrator maintains a positive outlook on her new life as an American, often referring to herself and her family as "the lucky ones." But the narrator's experience in America is not all rainbows and butterflies... She and her family are faced with similar ethnic hatred in America as they faced in Kosova. As she reexamines what it means to be "American," she realizes that her struggles is the uniting factor for all Americans. Everyone faces different hardships, but overcoming them is what ties Americans together. While it only took me about twenty minutes to read this book, its simplistic nature and poetic rhetoric delivered a powerful message.

Love to Langston by Tony Medina, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
I really enjoyed this book because it penetrated so many deep levels that many authors try, but sometimes fail, to achieve. On one level, I think Tony Medina was successful in creating a picture book that would be appropriate for a wide age range of students. I could see this book being read in a third grade classroom all the way through an eighth grade classroom. Through a series of short poems, Medina illustrates significant events and details of Langston Hughes' life. Not only do the readers learn about the environment in which he grew up, but we also learn about the struggles he endured as a poet. Many people, including his own father, discouraged him from pursuing his dream of becoming a writer/poet, but in the end, he followed his own intuition and is now regarded as one of America's greatest writers. This picture book is not only informative, but it also expresses many messages and morals that many students would appreciate.

DeShawn Days by Tony Medina, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
On the middle grades spectrum, I would put this picture book in a fourth or fifth grade classroom. To me, the book's simplistic concepts, ideas, and reading level are most appropriate for elementary students. DeShawn Days consists of a series of poems that document the life of DeShawn, a ten-year-old African American boy who lives in projects. Although I was not a huge fan of this book, I do think it would be worthwhile to read in a classroom because it shows a life that many of us have overlooked or have stereotyped. As revealed in this book, children and their families who live in the projects can be empathetic towards others, have big imaginations, are intelligent, and are proactive in their communities; therefore, DeShawn Days definitely has the ability to humanize this group of people for those hold negative stigmas about the projects and those who live there.