Books

A Working Girl Can't Win : And Other Poems

Average customer rating:

Check these out
you're kidding me, right?
underbaked and flat
Fun, Make-You-Think Reading
Chick-lit poetry

A Working Girl Can't Win : And Other Poems
Deborah Garrison
Manufacturer: Modern Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Second Child: Poems
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Collected Poems
Open City, #6: The Only Woman He Ever Left

ASIN: 0375755403
Release Date: 2000-02-22

Amazon.com

Every couple of years, some unlucky soul gets designated as the Poet for People Who Hate Poetry, and now it seems to be Deborah Garrison's turn. It's easy to see why: she gets the voice of the late 20th-century New Yorker to perfection, in all its kvetchy, melancholic glory. At times it's like hearing George Costanza channeling Emily Dickinson:

I'm never going to sleep
with Martin Amis
or anyone famous.

Garrison also tends to sidestep metaphysics in favor of more accessible subject matter. That means love (mostly unrequited) and work (mostly unbearable, particularly for a working girl in a testosterone-driven office, wearied by the appearance of yet "another alpha male-- / a man's man, a dealmaker"). No wonder Garrison seems so appealing. And no wonder her publisher has capitalized on this appeal by packaging her book in such a sleek, chic jacket. It would be a mistake, however, to write her off as one more neurotic light versifier. Her metaphoric agility can take you by surprise: note the Atlantic breeze coming "up out of the surf / like a dog gone swimming, / slagging sand and spray every which way / and making the news unreadable." So, too, can the note of resignation that undergirds so many of Garrison's vignettes-in-verse, giving even her most featherweight performances an odd, unchic intensity.

Book Description

Deborah Garrison, whose work as an editor and writer has enlivened the pages of The New Yorker for more than a decade, evokes the characters and events of her everyday life with intense feeling and, more important, conjures up the universal dilemmas and pleasures of a young woman trying to come to terms with love and work.

Customer Reviews:

Check these out.......2007-04-15

This is very good poetry: insightful, articulate, and very witty. Garrison is quite deft with the English language and doesn't litter her writing with clever, irrelevant tricks. She keeps her work focused and to the point. She has the snap and sting of Michael Benedikt.

you're kidding me, right?.......2004-07-29

That this book got any attention still blows me away. What a boring bunch of poems that read like a nightmarish open reading. If this is poetry that can actually get into the popular vein, I'm gonna lock myself in the library and not talk to anyone.

underbaked and flat.......2004-02-24

Great idea for a collection--poems from the point of view of a female office worker. But there's not much empathy, not much risk, not much music, not much wit, not much anything here. These are above all intellectually and linguistically lazy poems which aim for irony but seldom get beyond archness. No perceptions you couldn't find in the pages of a woman's magazine or on a TV-show about working women--and not even as entertaining as any number of chick lit novels.

Fun, Make-You-Think Reading.......2003-12-02

I picked this book off the shelf by chance. My good luck.

Deborah Garrison's little book of poetry is a treasure. It's funky, funny, wonderful reading. This collection will impress any lover of poetry, whether you just started reading yesterday or you've been a fan for years.

Her writing is accessible. Her writing is real; while she wants to be a "modern" woman, all unoppressed and girl power-ish, she is still a human. And she let's you know that up front. One of the best things about it is that you don't have to break out a dictionary to understand it. And it doesn't take days worth of analyzation to get through a few lines either. Buy it!

Chick-lit poetry.......2003-07-15

It's Bridget Jones country, which I don't think is such a terrible thing. And it's easy to read, which I don't think is such a terrible thing. The poems tell of the men in the poetess's life, from her mother's lovers to her boss, the other men at her job, and her husband. It's in the colloquial style of the English Movement, with something of the American Confessional. Sometimes (at least in the Fight Song) it even scans and rhymes.
The five stars are not because it's GREAT poetry, but because it's enjoyable, true-to-life and readable...

33 Things Every Girl Should Know: Stories, Songs, poems, and Smart Talk by 33 Extraordinary Women

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Excellent
Almost perfect
GREAT!
A great book!!!!
Hillary Clinton names "33 Things..." in July speech

33 Things Every Girl Should Know: Stories, Songs, poems, and Smart Talk by 33 Extraordinary Women
Tonya Bolden
Manufacturer: Crown Books for Young Readers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Girls' Book of Wisdom: Empowering, Inspirational Quotes from over 400 Fabulous Females
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Be True to Yourself: A Daily Guide for Teenage Girls
Girls Rule: ...A Very Special Book Created Especially for Girls (Teens & Young Adults)

ASIN: 0517709368
Release Date: 1998-02-17

Amazon.com

Editor Tonya Bolden makes no bones about it: "It's no secret. This book is about girl build-up." Accordingly, the pieces collected in 33 Things Every Girl Should Know have the spicy flavor of rabble-rousing. But instead of a radical call to arms, readers will find more of a call to self-esteem, self-respect, and a summons to keep their eyes on a bright future. Subtitled "Stories, Songs, Poems, and Smart Talk by 33 Extraordinary Women," this collection offers young women first-hand advice from such diverse luminaries as Lynda Barry, Sandra Cisneros, Johnetta Cole, Alice Hoffman, Lauren Hutton, M. E. Kerr, Rebecca Lobo, Natalie Merchant, Faith Ringgold, Tabitha Soren, Vera Wang, Wendy Wasserstein, and Sigourney Weaver. These grown-up girls hearken from many realms and backgrounds, with widely varying experiences and skills, but all join their voices here to offer insight, advice, and a surprising expanse of common ground.

From a fiercely funny comic strip about mean girls, to a moving essay about living with spina bifida, to a forensic discussion of why it's not a crime for girls to love science, these stories reflect and encourage female wit, wisdom, and perseverance. Most of all, the essential 33 things display the infinite range of options for girls, and will inspire young women to pursue the pathways paving their dreams.

Book Description

Natalie Merchant. Sigourney Weaver. Tabitha Soren. Wendy Wasserstein. Rebecca Lobo. Lauren Hutton. Anita Roddick. Lynda Barry. These are among the thirty-three extraordinary women who lend their diverse voices to this outstanding collection of stories, songs, poems, comics, and essays that will give every adolescent girl reason to feel hopeful about making the transition from girlhood to womanhood. Dealing with subjects like popularity, success, communication with boys, speaking one's mind, and body image, here is a book that offers help and inspiration to girls as they struggle to find a portrayal of womanhood they can call their own. 33 Things Every Girl Should Know is an empowering and inspirational gift book that every girl will want to own, to share with friends, and to use as a springboard to self-knowledge, self-acceptance, and self-esteem.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent.......2006-08-10

My daughter loves this book. She reads me poems and stories from this book all the time. I think all teenagers should purchase this book.

Almost perfect.......2004-05-12

Funny, witty, moving inspiring. Lots of role models of different types dealing with emotional, physical, intellectual, social challenges of growing up. Wish I'd had such a book when growing up.

Minor caveat -- lots of discussion of different things girls can be when grown up, but no mention of being a mother. I understand that one does not want to be encouraging teenage girls to have babies, but on the other hand would have been nice to have something addressing what is likely to be a significant portion of a woman's life. For instance, they could have had an essay by a physician who works part-time and is home with kids part-time, to make the point that getting a good education and a skilled professional job can make it easier to do flex-time and work from home. Something to prepare girls to get ready to balance work and family, to be thinking about the choices they will be making, and to acknowledge the importance and satisfactions of the drive to nurture.

GREAT!.......1999-11-05

This book was a really good book showing girls how to pull through struggles, not let yourself get down, being strong and many other vital things girls need to know and aren't taught.

A great book!!!!.......1999-06-24

The book is really good. The book talks about different women that have have grown up and are telling others their stories. They help others realize that the world is not perfect and how to get though it. I would give this book to anyone I know.

Hillary Clinton names "33 Things..." in July speech.......1998-08-10

This July at the 150th anniversary of the first women's rights convention in Seneca Falls, New York, First Lady Hillary Clinton mentioned "33 Things Every Girl Should Know" in her speech before 15,000 people. Two hours after the speech, "33 Things..." was flying off the shelf at a book signing at the Women's Rights National Historical Park. My 13 year old daughter, Elizabeth Jenkins-Sahlin, an author of one chapter called "Get Involved!", autographed 205 books. The books ran out before her writing hand tired. She is the great, great, great granddaughter of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, early founder of the women's movement. There is no question this chapter and this book empowers girls. Oh, by the way, Elizabeth says, "Even my 50 year old dad likes the book."

Red Hot Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States

Average customer rating:

STRAIGHT TO THE HEART
Great book!

Red Hot Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Being Young and Latino in the United States
Lori Marie Carlson
Manufacturer: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

Cool Salsa
The Tree Is Older Than You Are: A Bilingual Gathering of Poems & Stories from Mex
Wachale! : Poetry and Prose about Growing Up Latino
The Day It Snowed Tortillas / El Dia Que Nevaron Tortillas, Folktales told in Spanish and English
The Tequila Worm

ASIN: 0805076166
Release Date: 2005-03-10

Book Description

en years after the publication of the acclaimed Cool Salsa, editor Lori Marie Carlson has brought together a stunning variety of Latino poets for a long-awaited follow-up. Established and familiar names are joined by many new young voices, and Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Oscar Hijuelos has written the Introduction. The poets collected here illuminate the difficulty of straddling cultures, languages, and identities. They celebrate food, family, love, and triumph. In English, Spanish, and poetic jumbles of both, they tell us who they are, where they are, and what their hopes are for the future.

Customer Reviews:

STRAIGHT TO THE HEART.......2006-07-17

There are dozens of poignant poems, each written in Spanish and English. I used these in my writing program, and even with parents on back to school night. Parents and 7th grade Latino students responded and the activity spawned a deeply thoughtful dialogue. Highly recommended.

Great book!.......2005-10-14

As a latina born and raised in Mexico with a gringo father and now in the U.S. I found many of the poems to be an accurate reflection of being bicultural and the many directions it pulls you in.

I found the book (along with discussion questions and activities for classroom use) at: http://www.colorincolorado.org/inclass/books_month_oct05.php

Average customer rating:

Fearless Leader

Embryoyo: New Poems
Dean Young
Manufacturer: McSweeney's
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1932416692

Book Description

People have often tried to pin down what it is that Dean Young does. He has been variously called a New Age surrealist, son of the New York School, a comically tragic poet who knows the pain at the heart of a joke, a lunatic, a stuffed bunny, and a fire engine of the Romantic imagination. But if these things are true, they come at us in a unique, compelling, warm, funny, poignant, and sometimes cracked voice. Each of his poems is an enactment, a representation of psychic life as it moves through modes of argument, autobiography, and conventional lyric impulses while making room for textual experimentation. For Young, what is most important is that the poem be felt and that through his work one can participate in the alarm and beauty, the fury and injury inherent in being alive.

Customer Reviews:

Fearless Leader.......2007-03-09

Prodigality--superhuman productivity-- is a famous sign of genius, and that's the case with Dean Young, as his fans know. People who suggest that he is publishing too much should just take a nap, or go back to their novels. In fact, though the books keep coming, there has been zero diminshment of inspiration; the poems continue to invent and try new backflips, and most importantly, they continue to testify to the beauty and terror of being alive. There isn't another American poet who is as genuiniely and effectively SINCERE and humanist as Young is; in some ways, all his energetic acrobatics serve to make a protectied space (protected by irony, protected by irrefutable demonstrations of the animal vitality of imagination-- a space in which the man can speak to his fellow humans about our rare condition. Younger American poetry is filled now with zany-ish Dean Young childfren, raised in Dean Young Daycare Centers around the country, fed Ritalin and Scrabble pieces--the worst lack all conviction, the best are filled with passionate intensity. Not DY's fault. The wave will break, and other kinds of poems will be written. And after it, if we are lucky, Young will still be writing his poems on the beach-- not to have a career, or win awards (he has won shockingly few) but because he Has to write them. He's one of our truest, most honest and human, and most brilliant poets. There used to be an expression--"an ornament of the age". Young is one of ours. We should just enjoy him.

This Same Sky: A Collection of Poems from Around the World

Average customer rating:

Lost in Translation
Poetry from around the world

This Same Sky: A Collection of Poems from Around the World
Naomi Shihab Nye
Manufacturer: Aladdin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0689806302

Customer Reviews:

Lost in Translation.......2006-05-01

English is a simplistic language when compared to a great many other languages. It simply doesn't have the same potential for subtle nuances, rhyming, and other things of that nature. With that in mind, it's always hit-or-miss as to whether a translated poem will carry the same impact in English as it did in its original language. That, I would say, is one of the problems with this book, and it's not the book's, nor Naomi Shihab Nye's fault.

As the other reviewer said, some of the poems are quite good, some are obscure, and some are downright puzzling, and I imagine those particular ones, in their original language, had a lot more clarity of vision and feeling. The cultural backgrounds are a pitfall, as was also stated, though if a reader has a small knowledge of world history, the captions at the bottom of each poem which state the country of the author's origin are a great help. For example, when reading a poem about scrounging in the jungle, looking for a few scraps of rice, AK-47 in hand, it helps to know if the author is Vietnamese.

That notwithstanding, some of the poems are simply confusing, and I am an English major, and some, also due to the translation, I imagine, seem more like straight-forward prose.

All in all, This Same Sky is a good collection, and it does a very good job representing a broad cross-section of the world. It's just a shame the English language doesn't do the works justice. So, with that in mind, it's the translation's fault that I only gave the book 3 stars.

Poetry from around the world.......2004-04-11

Naomi Shihab Nye has collected over one hundred poems from poets all over the world. The poems are about many things, including nature and families. While the details of the poetry (items, animals and birds) are foreign, the feelings expressed are familiar to us all.

Some of the poems are funny, like the one from Altazor by Vicente Huidobro, many others are sad ("My Life Story" by Lan Nguyen and "Behind Bars" by Fadwa Tuqan). Some poems are puzzling, like "Petrified Minute" by Zoltan Zelk and others make you want to know more of the story behind them, like Ruth Dallas's "A New Dress" and Gu Cheng's "A Headstrong Boy." There are poems that create beautiful mental images, and poems that leave the reader bewildered and vaguely disturbed (Tony Perez's "Volunteer Worker").

While the words have been translated into English, much of this poetry is difficult to understand. Many poems would be almost meaningless for a reader with no frame of reference to place the poem in. The poem "Jerusalem" by the Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai is one that a reader with little knowledge about the history of Palestine would find puzzling. The brief Notes on the Contributors at the back of the volume help explain a little more about the poets, but to truly understand some of the poetry more background information is needed. This collection is not one most children will fully understand on their own.

You Hear Me?: Poems and Writing by Teenage Boys (Betsy Franco Yas)

Average customer rating:

Honest
Appalling
great-except for first entry...
Tender? Deep? Try Tolerance Run Amok
Poetry for the Teenage Boy!

You Hear Me?: Poems and Writing by Teenage Boys (Betsy Franco Yas)

Manufacturer: Candlewick
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Things I Have to Tell You: Poems and Writing by Teenage Girls (Betsy Franco Yas)
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What Have You Lost?

ASIN: 076361159X
Release Date: 2001-05-01

Book Description

Teenage boys speak out—without the filter of adult sensibility—in a compelling collection of poetry and prose.

In a powerful collection of more than seventy uncensored poems and essays, more than fifty teenage boys from across the country explore their many-layered concerns: identity, love, envy, gratitude, sex, anger, competition, fear, hope. Here, unadorned and without the filter of adult sensibility, is the raw stuff of their lives, in their own words. Isn’t it time to listen?

Customer Reviews:

Honest.......2007-03-03

This book is a genuine, heartfelt, and very honest portrait of teenagers in urban America. There are those, no doubt, who will be offended by its explicit language and subject matter. Nevertheless, explicit language is one of the hallmarks of teenagers grappling with issues of sexuality, drug use, disability, and a myriad of complex social relationships. This book will not expose teenagers to issues with which they are unfamiliar - despite its language, it will not taint innocent minds. Rather, it will model a healthy way (writing poetry) to grapple with the questions most teenagers face as they navigate the difficult path to adulthood.

Appalling.......2006-12-09

The facts about this book are clear from these excerpts from an article in the New York Daily News,Dec. 7, 2006:

"Sixth-graders at a Queens school were getting quite an education - in homosexuality, French kissing and cursing - thanks to three books widely available in classroom libraries. ... Several parents learned of the racy books after overhearing their kids snickering about the sexual themes.
The poem 'I Hate School' in a book called 'You Hear Me?' includes the rhyme, 'F--- this s---, up the a--. I don't think I'll ever pass.' Another poem compares eating an orange to having sex, while several passages repeatedly use vulgar slang for genitalia. Principal Carmen Parache said ... they were ''definitely inappropriate.' ... 'As soon as I saw them, I pulled them and they are no longer in the school'"

great-except for first entry..........2005-03-05

"Time somebody told me" has been around a lot longer than the young man who submitted it - Otherwise, love the real, true feelings expressed!

Tender? Deep? Try Tolerance Run Amok.......2004-04-12

(...) YOU HEAR ME: POEMS AND WRITINGS BY TEENAGE BOYS is a collection of teenage angst that will shock most any parent who reads this book. That may come as a surprise to those on the left who promote the acceptance of trash as "tolerance"... but "shocked" is probably being kind as many parents would be flat-out angry at finding their 7th-12th grader in possession of this book.

Let me be honest: This book cannot even be reviewed with the frankness I would like, in using words from the book itself, because Amazon would, rightfully, strike it for being obscene! The editorial reviews above give you a taste.

Teenage boys, for YEARS, have grown up learning right from wrong, but to those who praise this book I suppose that's an oppressive and old-fashioned concept. Books like this - and praise for them - say that it's okay (and right) to use vulgarity, promote pre-marital sex - and more - all in the name of "acceptance of young boys angst." Sorry, but some of us still believe you stand up for what is right and true and good and call trash what it deserves to be called - and what this book is - TRASH that belongs nowhere near a junior high library.

Poetry for the Teenage Boy!.......2004-01-30

This poetry book edited by Betsey Franco is an excellent book.The poetry is written by teenage boys.The writing is freeverse.The boys tell their emotions which consists of sad,happy,and hurt feelings. They write about things that are important to them like , how they were abused mentally and phisically, how they didn't have girlfriends,and about secrets they never told any one. Over all it was a five star book.I liked this book because I could relate to it.

The Complete Book of Rhymes, Songs, Poems, Fingerplays and Chants: Over 700 Selections

Average customer rating:

Wonderful resourse
The Complete Book of Rhymes, Songs, Poems, Fingerplays: Over 700 Selections by Jackie Silberg
Disappointed
Great resource for working with young children
A Wonderful Resource

The Complete Book of Rhymes, Songs, Poems, Fingerplays and Chants: Over 700 Selections

Manufacturer: Gryphon House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0876590539

Product Description

Over 700 rhymes, songs, poems, fingerplays, and chants The Complete Book and CDs of Rhymes, Songs, Poems, Fingerplays, and Chants gives children a variety of ways to fall in love with rhythm, rhyme, repetition, and structural sequence?important building blocks for future readers. The 700 selections will help children ages 3 to 6 build a strong foundation in listening skills, imagination, coordination, and spatial and body awareness. The accompanying CDs feature 50 songs guaranteed to get everyone up and moving! The book includes three easy indexes for quick reference: First Line Index A horse and a flea and three blind mice? All around the cobbler?s bench? I caught myself a baby bumblebee? I went to the Animal Fair? Theme Connection Index Alphabet Emotions Families Opposites ?and More! Category Index Action rhymes Fingerplays Nursery rhymes Sequencing songs Tongue twisters ?and More! The CDs include 50 songs from the book, such as: The Ants Go Marching · The Bear Went Over the Mountain · I?ve Been Working on the Railroad · Itsy Bitsy Spider · John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt · Make New Friends · Miss Mary Mack · The More We Get Together · Skidamarink

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful resourse.......2006-11-06

I am thrilled with this book. It is exactly what I wanted. It is well worth the price. It has stories and pictures ready to color to go with the rhymes, stories, etc. The index of activities is 11 pages long. There are 640 pages in the book. There is a Thematic Chart. The book covers games, stories, action stories, listening stories,prop stories,puppet stories, rebus stories, arts and crafts recipes, food recipes, and dances. The book is printed in black and white.

The Complete Book of Rhymes, Songs, Poems, Fingerplays: Over 700 Selections by Jackie Silberg.......2006-08-03

Has every fingerplay and poem I remember from childhood

Disappointed .......2004-08-17

I purchased this book thinking I would receive numerous ideas to use in my kindergarten class. I was very disappointed in the quality of this book. I was looking for finger plays and most of this book contained songs/rhymes without body movements. The fingerplays that are listed are very common ones, that most adults know from childhood. I was looking for something different. If you are looking for pages full of songs/rhymes (many with out a tune to follow) than this is the book for you. It wasn't for me.

Great resource for working with young children.......2003-06-29

If you are a teacher, daycare worker, or just like to have a lot of ideas for young children you will love this book! Jackie Silberg and Pam Schiller have compiled a collection of over 700 children's rhymes, songs, poems, fingerplays and chants. What a wonderful nostalgic trip as I turned through the pages and read rhymes and chants that I have not heard since my early childhood. Jumprope chants, skipping songs, songs for hand clapping games, they are all here. Examples include Aiken Drum, Baby Bumblebee, the Bear Went Over the Mountain, The Cow, Dr. Foster Went to Gloucester, Five Little Ducks, Going on a Bear Hunt, I Have a Loose Tooth, John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt, Over in the Meadow, Sippin' Cider Through a Straw, and Zum Gali Gali. Each of the items is followed by a Theme Connection to allow you to quickly apply the song or chant to a particular theme such as counting, chickens, cooking, pets, emotions, or families. While most people would have no problem figuring out a theme to which they apply, the advantage here is that not only are the songs and chants listed alphabetically in the index, but there is also a thematic index to allow you to quickly find an appropriate song or chant. "The Complete Book of Rhymes, Songs, Poems, Fingerplays, and Chants" is a very highly recommended purchase for anyone dealing with young children.

A Wonderful Resource.......2003-03-22

I think this book is great. It is a massive collection of the old, the favorite, and all those songs and rhymes that are on the tip of your tongue, but you can't remember. This is a book to buy and keep handy, both for teachers and for parents. You will be able to grab it and quickly find what you are looking for.

This would also be a great gift for new parents or teachers.

Young Years: Best Loved Stories and Poems for Little Children

Average customer rating:

Let kids read a part of our past
jumpstart a kid's reading career
jumpstart a kid's reading career

Young Years: Best Loved Stories and Poems for Little Children

Manufacturer: Atheneum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: School & Library Binding
ASIN: 0819303569

Customer Reviews:

Let kids read a part of our past.......2005-07-11

This is a great reading book for kids. My kids enjoyed it and now my grandchildren are enjoying it. It has a lot of the older fairy tales and poems on it's pages that seem to be fading with time. I highly recommend it. I even found copies for my kids to keep as an heirloom.

jumpstart a kid's reading career.......2004-07-08

This is among the first books I ever read, and I read it cover to cover several times. Not one work of fiction, but an all-encompassing collection of fairy tales, bedtime stories and poems. If you were read it in bed, or the Grimm brothers spooked your ancestors with it, or Disney made a warm-n-fuzzy adaptation of it, it's probably in here.

A great way to kickstart a kid's imagination. If your family has a child between the ages of 5 and 12, your household should have access to Young Years.

jumpstart a kid's reading career.......2004-07-08

This was among the very first books I ever read, and I read it cover to cover several times. It is not one story but an all-encompassing collection of fairy tales, poems, bedtime stories and general childhood mythology. If you heard it as a kid, or the Grimm brothers spooked your ancestors with it, or Disney made a warm-n-fuzzy adaptation of it, it's probably in here somewhere.

It was a great kickstart to my own imagination. Every household with a child between the ages of 5 and 12 should have access to something like Young Years.

Average customer rating:

incredible
Color Me Amazed
The Poet in All of Us
Richie's Picks: A Maze Me

A Maze Me: Poems for Girls
Naomi Shihab Nye
Manufacturer: HarperTeen
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

What Have You Lost?
A Kick in the Head: An Everyday Guide to Poetic Forms (Ala Notable Children's Books. Middle Readers)
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Going Going

ASIN: 0060581891
Release Date: 2005-03-15

Book Description

Life is a tangle of
twisting paths.
Some short.
Some long.
There are dead ends.
And there are choices.
And wrong turns,
and detours,
and yield signs,
and instruction booklets,
and star maps,
and happiness,
and loneliness.
And friends.
And sisters.
And love.
And poetry.

Life is a maze.
You are a maze.
Amazed.
And amazing.

Customer Reviews:

incredible.......2007-06-02

Naomi Shihab Nye has a relationship with words and Emotions that few people achieve in their life, regardless of their age. She is my favorite poet as well as my favorite author and I have never dislike one of her poems.

A Maze Me is no exception. Every poem sends a strong message or fills you with a feeling or new idea. Each poem is written so beautifully that no illustration is needed, as it probes curiosity and imaginitive explanations. In my opinion, Naomi Shihab Nye is very philosophical, and this thinking appears through metaphors that are evenly distributed throughout her literature.

A Maze Me is an incredible set of poems and your life will not be complete until you have read this.

Color Me Amazed.......2006-06-27

This book by the sublime Naomi Shihab Nye is subtitled "Poems for Girls," but I don't think that this charming book should be restricted to one gender. I certainly chuckled, oohed, and aahed a number of times as I read through it. (Still, it WOULD make a great gift for the young girl in your life.)

Shihab Nye has a generosity of spirit that shines through her poetry like a twinkle in a kindly aunt's eye. Here is a little somethin'-somethin' to whet your appetite (excerpted from "Ringing"):

"Now, when I hear an ice-cream truck chiming its bells, I fly
Even if I'm not hungry -- just to watch it pass.

Mailmen with their chime of dogs barking
up and down the street are magic too.

They are all bringers.
I want to be a bringer.

I want to drive a truck full of eggplants down the smallest street. I want to be someone making music with my coming."

The Poet in All of Us.......2006-05-24

Once I read Naomi Shihab Nye's introduction, I felt I was about to turn the pages of something very special. I was right. This unique collection of poems gives the reader a chance to look at familiar life in a new way. Full of nostalgia, intimate and humorous, tender and tearful, this is a book I would love to underline and memorize. I look forward to writing in my own notebook, trying to find the poet in me.

Richie's Picks: A Maze Me.......2005-04-29

"Ringing

A baby, I stood in my crib to hear
the dingy-ding of a vegetable truck approaching.

When I was bigger, my mom took me out
to the street
to meet the man who rang the bell and
he tossed me
a tangerine...

...the first thing I ever caught. I thought
he was
a magic man.

My mom said there used to be milk trucks too.
She said,
Look hard, he'll be gone soon. And she was right.
He disappeared.

Now when I hear an ice-cream truck chiming
its bells, I fly.
Even if I'm not hungry--just to watch it pass.

Mailmen with their chime of dogs barking
up and down the street are magic too.

They are all bringers.

I want to be a bringer.

I want to drive a truck full of eggplants down
the smallest street.

I want to be someone making music
with my coming."

And so she is. And so she does.
A great joy that accompanies a new book of poems by Naomi Shihab Nye is the expectation that she will begin reappearing at national conferences and conventions, reading aloud from her latest collection. The good feeling I've taken away with me from her past workshops is about as close as I get to church these days.

A MAZE ME contains seventy-two of Naomi's latest poems. Younger teens will find these pieces easy to read and relate to. Hopefully, many will be intrigued and inspired by Naomi's ability to create poetry from such sources as a car manual, a newspaper article, a taco sign, "the hair on the head of the girl in front of me in school," Julia Child's patting potatoes, or a vapor trail "X" that a pair of planes have inadvertently left in the sky.

Being a book of "Poems for Girls" there are also the requisite handful of "longing" poems:

"High Hopes

It wasn't that they were so
high, exactly,
they were more
low-down,
close-to-the-ground,
I could rub them
the way you touch a cat
that rubs against your ankles
even if he isn't yours.

So yes I feel lonely without them.
Now that I know the truth,
that I only dreamed someone liked me,
the cat has curled up in a bed of leaves
against the house and I still have to do
everything I had to do before
without a secret hum
inside."

Despite being a guy, I really enjoyed the images and memories conjured up by these poems. Whether reading "Visiting My Old Kindergarten Teacher, Last Day of School," "Turtle" (about the persistent creature that had walked for twenty years), or "Across the Aisle" (about the little girl who coughed "every 30 seconds for seven whole hours" on a transatlantic flight), I've repeatedly interrupted Rosemary's reading on the couch and Shari's grading papers at the kitchen table in order to have an audience with whom to share the poems aloud.
"Big Head, Big Face
(what my brother said to me)

If your head had been smaller
maybe you woulda had less thoughts in it,
maybe you wouldn't have so many troubles.
This is just a guess but seems to me
like a little drawer only hold a few spoons
and you can always find the one you need
while a big drawer jammed with tongs
strings corks junky stuff receipts birthday cards
you never gonna look at
scrambled and mixed so one day
you open that drawer
poke your hand in and big knife go
through your palm
you didn't even know a knife was IN there,
well, that's why I think
it might not be so bad to have a little head
with just a few thoughts few memories few hopes
maybe if only one little one came true
that be enough for you."

Luckily for us, Naomi Shihab Nye has carefully sifted through that drawer to provide an entertaining assortment of poetic images, thoughts, stories, and yoga poses.

19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East

Average customer rating:

Allegorical camaflouge...
Naomi Shihab Nye
poems of beautiful simplicity and loving honesty
"There's a place in this brain where hate won't grow."
subtle stories

19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East
Naomi Shihab Nye
Manufacturer: HarperTeen
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0060504048
Release Date: 2005-03-15

Amazon.com

As she grieved over the "huge shadow [that] had been cast across the lives of so many innocent people and an ancient culture's pride" after September 11, 2001, poet and author Naomi Shihab Nye's natural response was to write, to grasp "onto details to stay afloat." Accordingly, Nye has gathered over four dozen of her own poems about the Middle East and about being an Arab American living in the United States. Devoted followers of the award-winning and beloved poet will recognize some of their favorites from her earlier collections (The Space Between Our Footsteps: Poems and Paintings from the Middle East, etc.), while absorbing themselves in her new haunting and evocative poems. Nye writes of figs and olives, fathers' blessings and grandmothers' hands that "recognize grapes, / and the damp shine of a goat's new skin." She writes of Palestinians, living and dead, of war, and of peace. Readers of all ages will be profoundly moved by the vitality and hope in these beautiful lines from Nye's heart. (Ages 9 to adult) --Emilie Coulter

Book Description

"Tell me how to live so many lives at once ..."

Fowzi, who beats everyone at dominoes; Ibtisam, who wanted to be a doctor; Abu Mahmoud, who knows every eggplant and peach in his West Bank garden; mysterious Uncle Mohammed, who moved to the mountain; a girl in a red sweater dangling a book bag; children in velvet dresses who haunt the candy bowl at the party; Baba Kamalyari, age 71; Mr. Dajani and his swans; Sitti Khadra, who never lost her peace inside.

Maybe they have something to tell us.

Naomi Shihab Nye has been writing about being Arab-American, about Jerusalem, about the West Bank, about family all her life. These new and collected poems of the Middle East -- sixty in all -- appear together here for the first time.

Customer Reviews:

Allegorical camaflouge..........2007-02-12

If people took the time to understand the subliminal, mocking nature of this book, I wonder if they would still rave about it so?
The Biblical analogy of Gazelles, figs, grapes, and the Hebraic etymology they entail, speaks of an amassing of combatants gathered together to comence as destroyers. The shiny new skin of a Goat is quite evil from the same perspective. Shining glistening definitions are worth a look in Hebrew. As well as Goats being seperated from the sheep at the final judgement. The sheep go to the right to Paradise. The Goats are parted to the left and are cast into Hell!
A woman of this level of education, and background knows full well the various curtural meanings and terminologies of certain Biblical paralells, the regional connatations that apply, and is quite the master employing them so they appear more "warm and fuzzy."

Naomi Shihab Nye.......2006-03-21

Nye is one of the best voices of the middle east for young readers. Her poetry and picture books are all evocative, raising issues of family, identity and tolerance. Her work is a rich resource for any teacher who hopes to offer students empathy and insight for the middle east.

poems of beautiful simplicity and loving honesty.......2005-12-28

In her introduction to "19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East," Naomi Shihab Nye writes that after the September 11 attacks, "a huge shadow had been cast across the lives of so many innocent people and an ancient culture's pride." (Nye, xv) As an American born girl with a Middle Eastern father, Nye can write from behind that shadow, shedding light on the tormented hearts of Arab-Americans trying to come to terms with September 11th.

When Americans think of the Middle East, we often think only of the hatred and violence of terrorism. It is important, therefore, to read poetry by writers like Nye, who help us to remember that there is love, generosity and beauty to be found there too. Her poems have a beautiful simplicity and loving honesty that can speak to both children and adults.

I especially connected to the poems Nye wrote about the members of her family, such as "For Mohammed on the Mountain" and "My Grandmother in the Stars". The poem about her uncle inspired me to write about family members I hardly know or have never met. Reading Naomi Shihab Nye's poetry reminded me of the great wealth we all have of places and people who are especially deep in our hearts--a richness unique to our own experience that can be a wonderful source of writing material.

Nye is a shining example of a writer who uses her gift to promote a message of peace and understanding in a world stained with fear, hate and close-mindedness.

"There's a place in this brain where hate won't grow.".......2002-09-15

This collection is a perfect example of the ability of a gifted poet to communicate difficult truths simply. Each piece is a work of art and sings in the voices of immigrants and immigrants' children and with the rhythms of life in the Middle East. This is a fantastic book in its own right and a great introduction to the talent and skill of Naomi Shihab Nye.

subtle stories.......2002-04-23

this book was recommended to me by a friend, so i wasn't sure what to expect. i am really glad to have bought it, the poems are like little stories someone tells you on the porch while it's getting dark. very vivid, i felt as if i knew these people...fathers, mothers, grandmothers, schoolchildren, old arab men selling crafts...

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