Chris Harris (3)

How often do you see a substantial children's collection of poetry by one author? Last I recall would indeed be *A Light in the Attic*, which does bear a passing resemblance to this. It's a different experience to read this instead of an anthology.

Smith's illustrations are different than his usual style, too. Much more subtle and palatable....

Good book design... lots of little things make a fan want a copy of her own, instead of just reading the library's. For example, the jacket has one inviting design, but printed on the hardback itself is a quite different and also intriguing design.

Most poems here are nonsense, even one-line jokes. But once in a while there's something interesting like:

The Valleys Shape the Mountains

The valleys shape the mountains,
The shadow shapes the crescent moon,
The chill of late December
Shapes the warmth we feel in June.

So next time that you're crying,
Just remember this small rhyme;
Your sadness shapes the happiness
You'll feel again in time.

Or:

(from) The Remarkable Age
...
Right now you're the oldest that you've ever been--
And yet, you will never be this young again....

And then there are concrete poems. I always knew that MOM upside-down is WOW.
But until I read "Out on the Farm on a Saturday Night" I didn't realize what an upside-down cow says... or a sideways cow... or an owl who is upside down... figure it our yourself, from WHO WHO.

I highly recommend this book to all kids, and to most educators and libraries.… (more)