Sunday, January 17, 2010

Poetrees: First Review!

Poetrees has received its first review, an "exquisite" one from School Library Journal:
FLORIAN, Douglas. Poetrees. illus. by author. 48p. glossary. CIP. S & S/Beach Lane Bks. Mar. 2010. RTE $16.99. ISBN 978-1-4169-8672-0. LC 2009003025.
Gr 3-6–Florian focuses on trees (seeds, bark, leaves, roots, and tree rings) and introduces readers to 13 species from around the world. An oversize, double-page illustration accompanies each poem. Some are read lengthwise, which enables the artist to highlight the awesome height and size of trees. The selections are accessible and concise, with child-friendly wordplay and artful design: of the “spreading,” “treading,” “always-outward-heading” banyan tree, Florian concludes: “It’s not a tree–/It’s a forest!” The primitive illustrations–crafted on “primed paper bags” using mixed media including gouache watercolor paints, colored pencils, rubber stamps, oil pastels, and collage–range in nuance from whimsy to mystery and reverence. In “The Seed,” Florian highlights the symmetry of trees by laying out the short text in a figure eight, an eternity symbol; this dovetails neatly with the overall theme of recycling and renewal. He concludes with a “Glossatree,” a thumbnail sketch of each tree, and an author’s note and sources. This exquisite collection, with its thoughtful wordplay and timely subject, rewards careful reading and should resonate with a wide audience.–Marilyn Taniguchi, Beverly Hills Public Library, CA
And here is the poem on the paper birch tree, native to America and known by at least three names. It usually grows where it's c-c-cold.
Paper Birch
Paper birch.
White birch.
Canoe birch too.
Beautiful
Native
Tree to view.
Smooth white birch bark.
Grows where it's cold.
Paper birrrrrrrrrrrrrch:
A sight to behold.
poem Paper Birch and image copyright 2010 by Douglas Florian

12 comments:

jama said...

Congratulations!!

laurasalas said...

Congratulations! Wonderful review.

And great poem. I love birches--they're my favorite. We have a river birch (but no river) in our backyard--the only tree I've ever planted that has thrived.

Douglas Florian said...

Thanks jama and laurasalas. Birch trees are also a favorite of mine but they struggle to survive in New York City.

sukipoet said...

this is great congrats

Chiara said...

Hi Douglas!

I'm very happy for you :-)

I'm writing you also for this: for many reasons I decided to change the URL and the name of my blog; the new name is:
www.luisamariaysugatita.blogspot.com
(this name sound spanish, but I'm still italian!)
Let's stay in touch!
All the best,
Chiara

Anonymous said...

A terrific review of a terrific book! :)

We have river birches around here...they really are so neat.

Kelly Polark said...

Amazing review! Congrats!
The birch trees are beautiful at my dad's cabin in northern Wisconsin. Love the birrrrrrrch!

Marinela said...

Congratulations :):):)

Amanda said...

Hey, Doug!

I jotted your name in my *Daily Planner* and you're visiting my class (well, Professor Sloan's class that I'm IN) @ Queens College May 4th.

I'm anxious to meet you and excited to get to know your work in the meantime.

Sincerely,
Amanda Z.

Anna Alter said...

Congratulations! It looks and sounds like a wonderful book, can't wait to get my hands on a copy.

Amy-Baskin.blogspot.com said...

Lovely! Will be on the lookout for it.

Stella said...

We love your work Douglas Florian! And by "we" I mean my ESL students and I! You are out of this world!