Product 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 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.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #30648 in Books
• Published on: 1999-09-28
• Released on: 1999-09-28
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 96 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780679893141
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

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.

Customer Reviews

Engaging way to introduce children to poetry.
When I ordered this book, I was very curious to see how my first-grader, a beginner reader, would respond to poetry that was more sophisticated and literary than the rhyming words of her preschool books. She absolutely loved it, understanding enough of the content, intrigued by the colorful illustrations and entertained by the way poems sound when read aloud. For the parent, it's a welcomed change of pace from reading stories aloud. For the child, it's an imaginative introduction to the different ways words can be used to express thoughts and feelings. I liked it so much that I ordered a copy for my child's first-grade class.

Great collection with beautiful illustrations
This is a great gift to kids (and adults) that like playing with words. Jack Prelutsky has compiled some of the best poetry of the 20th Century. His aim is true. There are no clunkers in this anthology. The poetry covers the broad range from wistful to joyful, with imagination to spare.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the illustrations by Meilo So. They gorgeously illustrate the gist of many poems. Just like the poems, the paintings drip with imagination and wonder.

Some people may frown at spoon-feeding images, rather than letting the child make up his/her own. They may have a point, yet you can always discuss the images with the kid, decide whether they properly frame the poems and/or discuss what other images would have been better. In other words, these illustrations can be used a spring board for further imaginative work.

All in all, I highly recommend this book.

My favorite all-time children's book
Paraphrase for your child the preface of this book- Jack Prelutsky's private poetry book collection totalled over 5000 volumes, and from these he culled the poems in this book. That immediately amazed my children who love to collect, and they knew these poems were special... My 6 year old boy - my Yugio loving, Ninja masked soccer playing boy, loves poetry as a result of this book, and recites several from memory. We copied his favorite to put on the bulletin board of his school when it was his turn to be student of the week.