Touch the Poem (hc)

Amazon.com Review

Arnold Adoff manages to climb inside a child's mind, body, and soul to write these poems of seeing, feeling, tasting, hearing, smelling... being. He loosely follows the seasons of the year with verses about the hottest day of the month so far, raking and rolling in fall leaves, the itchiness of a wet wool hat in winter, and a "Spring Saturday Morning":
Legs Into Over Alls,
Feet Into Socks,
Toes Finding
Their Places:
I Pull My Boots On
And Buckle My Rain
Slicker All The Way.
I Am Ready With My
Black Rubber Hat.

I Do A Monster Walk
Outside
Into The Mud.

Lisa Desimini's mixed-media collages use photographs, paintings, paper, and computer graphics to create exquisitely original artwork that perfectly engages with Adoff's verses. These two collaborated on another wonderful poetry collection called Love Letters. No need to be a poetry buff to enjoy either one of these special books. Go ahead--touch the poems! (Ages 4 and older) --Emilie Coulter

Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

Adoff and Desimini (Love Letters) salute the senses, especially touch, in this well-balanced collaboration. Written in Adoff's familiar "shaped speech" style, the initial title poem depicts a girl caressing her face: "As I Look At The O p e n Book/ On My Table:/ Each Poem/ A Gentle/ Touch." The poems describe physical sensations ("I/ .../ Rub/ The Palm/ Of My Hand/ On/ Daddy's/ Stubble/ C h e e k") and sensuous contact ("F u z z/ Of Peach Skin/ Round/ R u b s/ My Upper Lip Just/ B e f o r e/ First/ Bite"). Although the language is sometimes repetitious, the accumulation of detail evokes the sensation of the described activity. The shaped speech, however, seems random rather than integral to the rhythm of the poems. Desimini's striking mixed-media collages, on the other hand, make consistently pertinent use of off-center techniques, their ability to startle an effective contrast to Adoff's low-key approach. The girl of the title poem, for example, is shown in a photo superimposed onto the page of an open book, which in turn is shown held by a pair of hands placed where the reader's own hands would be, creating a book-within-a-book telescoping conceit. Illustrations are turned sideways, a reflection of a child's face is tipped into a drop of water, outsize images confound viewers' sense of scale. All in all, a tactile and visual treat. Ages 4-up. (Apr.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-5-In this interesting and original mix of photos, poetry, and computer graphics, Adoff and Desimini focus on the small moments in life. Each poem and illustration explores the human senses and how they can make even a second seem memorable. From the dedication page to the last selection that ends, "We Shine Together In Dark Night," this is a seamless effort that carries its theme throughout the book while each poem can be enjoyed on its own. The placement of the poems reinforces the words. Some of the selections are on one page, with the illustration on the facing page. Others run down the side of the picture. On other spreads, both the poem and the illustration run vertically along the spread. Clever computer graphics add their own touches. In one spread, a cat's footprints run down a girl's shirt. Funny, joyful, and creative.
Jane Marino, Scarsdale Public Library, NY
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The solid imagery of Adoff's poetry takes on a visual dimension when paired with Desimini's bold photographs. The experiences that touch a child's senses are celebrated here in poems that range from a walk on the beach to the feel of the fuzz on a peach as it rubs against the eater's lip. Sometimes both the poetry and the art are whimsical. A verse about the ways a little girl can relieve an itchy back ends with the idea of dropping a cat down her shirt. The photograph shows the girl sitting with her back to the camera, paw marks running down her shirt, and the cat trot