The Children’s Book Review
Published: April 1, 2013
This April, celebrate rhymes, haikus and more during “Poetry Month” with titles from Random House Children’s Books!
Enter to win a “Poetry Month” book prize pack from Random House Children’s Books.One (1) winner will receive a book prize pack:
- I Haiku You
- May B.
- The Language Inside
- Orchards
- Exposed
- Out of This World: Poems and Facts About Space!
- The Dancing Pancake
- Good Sports
- Your Own, Sylvia
- The 20th Century Children’s Poetry Treasury
Prize pack valued at $120+
Giveaway begins April 1, 2013, at 12:01 A.M. PST and ends April 30, 2013, at 11:59 P.M. PST.
About the Books
I HAIKU YOU
by Betsy Snyder
An accessible introduction to haiku for the littlest readers.
Charming multimedia illustrations and the Japanese poetic form are cleverly used to express “I love you!” to all manner of favorite things: a favorite teddy bear, a popsicle, a bike, a new friend, a beloved pet, and more. This giftable little picture book of haiku by award winner Betsy Snyder is something adults will love to give one another as much as they’ll enjoy sharing it with the youngest listeners.
Random House | 978-0-375-86750-7 | December 26, 2012 | $9.99 / $10.99 Can. | Ages 4 Up | 32 pgs
MAY B.
by Caroline Starr Rose
A fast-paced novel, written in beautiful and riveting verse, gives readers a new heroine to love.
May is helping out on a neighbor’s Kansas prairie homestead—just until Christmas, says Pa. She wants to contribute, but it’s hard to be separated from her family by 15 long, unfamiliar miles. Then the unthinkable happens: May is abandoned. Trapped in a tiny snow-covered sod house, isolated from family and neighbors, May must prepare for the oncoming winter. While fighting to survive, May’s memories of her struggles with reading at school come back to haunt her. But she’s determined to find her way home again. Caroline Starr Rose’s
Schwartz & Wade Books | 978-1-58246-393-3 | January 10, 2013 | $15.99/$17.99 Can. | Ages 8-12 | 240 pgs
THE LANGUAGE INSIDE
by Holly Thompson
A rich exploration of identity and home told in verse.
Emma Karas was raised in Japan; it’s the country she calls home. When Emma Karas’s mother is diagnosed with breast cancer, her family moves from Japan—the country she calls home—to a town outside Lowell, Massachusetts, to stay with Emma’s grandmother while her mom undergoes treatment. Feeling out of place, Emma begins to volunteer at a long-term care center where she helps Zena, a patient with locked-in syndrome, write down her poems. There, Emma meets Samnang, another volunteer, who assists elderly Cambodian refugees. Weekly visits to the care center, Zena’s poems, dance, and noodle soup bring Emma and Samnang closer, until Emma must make a painful choice: stay in Massachusetts, or return home early to Japan.
Delacorte Press | 978-0-385-73979-5 | May 14, 2013 | $17.99/$21 Can. | Ages 12 up | 528 pgs
Also available in paperback from Holly Thompson:
ORCHARDS
“A true achievement. Stunning storytelling wrapped in remarkable poetry. Beautiful.”
—Ellen Hopkins, author of Crank and Fallout
After a bullied classmate commits suicide, Kana Goldberg, a half-Japanese, half-Jewish American, is sent to her mother’s ancestral home in Japan for the summer. Kana wasn’t the bully, not exactly, but she didn’t do anything to stop what happened, either. As Kana begins to process the pain and guilt she feels, news from home sends her world spinning out of orbit all over again.
Ember Trade Paperback | 978-0-385-73978-8 | February 14, 2012 | $9.99/$10.99 Can. | Ages 12 up | 336 pgs
EXPOSED
by Kimberly Marcus
Told in breathtaking, searingly raw free verse, Kimberly Marcus’s unforgettable debut will appeal to fans of Laurie Halse Anderson.
Sixteen-year-old Liz is Photogirl—sharp, focused, and confident in what she sees through her camera lens, confident that she and Kate will be best friends forever. But everything changes in one blurry night. Suddenly, Kate is avoiding her and people are looking the other way she passes in the halls. As the aftershocks from a startling accusation rip through Liz’s world, everything she thought she knew about photography, family, friendship, and herself shifts out of focus. What happens when the picture you see no longer makes sense?
Ember Trade Paperback | 978-0-375-86591-6 | February 28, 2012 | $8.99/$9.99 Can. | Ages 14 up | 272 pgs
OUT OF THIS WORLD: POEMS AND FACTS ABOUT SPACE!
by Amy Sklansky; Illustrated by Stacey Schuett
A poetic exploration of space!
The mysteries of the universe and the science of space exploration are perennialy popular subjects, and Out of This World is a wonderful introduction. Amy Sklansky has written evocative poems about planets and stars and rockets and moon landings and satellites. Each poem is supported by additional facts and explanations in the margins. Stacey Schuett brings it all to life with color-soaked skies and beautiful perspectives in her fabulous paintings.
Alfred A. Knopf | 978-0-375-86459-9 | February 14, 2012 | $17.99/$19.99 Can. | Ages 5-9 | 40 pgs
THE DANCING PANCAKE
by Eileen Spinelli; Illustrated by Joanne Lew-Vreithoff
A sweet novel-in-verse about families, growing up, and fancy-footed flapjacks.
Changes and growing up seem to be happening too fast for 11-year-old Bindie, whose loving dad has left, without explanation. Bindie and her mom move to an apartment above The Dancing Pancake, the diner her mother and aunt decide to open. Forging a new business is hard, and figuring out her feelings about her parents, their separation, and the cute boy who never seems to notice her are equally challenging. But there are also fun new experiences, new friends, and ever-available french fries and family to help her navigate the twists and turns. Peppered with lively black-and-white illustrations, The Dancing Pancake gives sensitive voice to children handling a common experience.
Yearling Trade Paperback | 978-0-375-85348-7 | May 10, 2011 | $6.99/$7.99 Can. | Ages 8-12 | 256 pgs
GOOD SPORTS: Rhymes about Running, Jumping, Throwing, and More
by Jack Prelutsky; Illustrated by Chris Raschka
A grand slam collection by America’s #1 rhyme master.
Exhilarating, all-new, kid-friendly verses capture the range of emotions from the thrill of winning, to the agony of losing, to the sheer joy of participating. Jack Prelutsky, America’s first children’s poet laureate and a virtuoso at making poetry fun for the elementary school crowd, includes in this collection poems about the popular sports that kids play—team sports, individual sports, and even backyard frisbee tossing. The bouncy rhymes beg to be read aloud and lend themselves to easy recitation. Caldecott Medal Winner Chris Raschka’s stylized watercolors are a blaze of color and motion. An ALA-ALSC Notable Children’s Book of 2007, this exuberant picture book proves that poetry can be as much fun as playing games!
Dragonfly Trade Paperback | 978-0-375-86558-9 | February 8, 2011 | $7.99/$8.99 Can. | Ages 6-9 | 40 pgs
YOUR OWN, SYLVIA
by Stephanie Hemphill
A sensitive exploration of the life of Sylvia Plath in verse.
Kirkus Reviews described Your Own, Sylvia as “A must for any young adult reader of poetry or Plath.” Winner of a Printz Honor and a Booklist and Kirkus Editor’s Choice, this edition is perfect for backpacks and bookshelves and offers a poet’s view of teen-favorite Sylvia Plath.
Knopf Trade Paperback | 978-0-440-23968-0 | December 23, 2008 | $7.99/$8.99 Can. | Ages 12 up | 144 pgs
THE 20th CENTURY CHILDREN’S POETRY TREASURY
by Jack Prelutsky; Illustrated by Meilo So
The quintessential beginners’ guide to poetry for children.
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.
Alfred A. Knopf | 978-0-679-89314-1 |September 28, 1999 | $19.95 $26.00 | Ages All | 96 pgs
This giveaway is closed.
Thank you to everyone who entered!
Prizing courtesy of Random House Children’s Books.
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2 Comments
This is such an amazing and generous giveaway. Thanks for the chance.
Carol L
Congratulations to Steph Elias! She is the SUPER lucky winner of all of these wonderful poetry books. Enjoy!