​My newest lyrical nonfiction picture book, A Pathway for Pollinators, illustrated by Blanca Goméz and published by Norton Young Readers, releases today!  Just in time for planting season!

I'm continuing my series with a deeper dive into various poetry forms. So far we've looked at List poems and Haiku if you'd like to review those posts. Today's topic: Concrete poetry, also known as shape poetry, is “a form of playing with words, ideas, letters, and art. It is, in a sense, a picture poem, one that gives not only words but delight to the eye.” (Myra Cohn Livingston, Poem-Making) The poem’s words are placed or fit into the construct of a recognizable shape to reflect the poem’s subject. That’s the challenge – can you select the right wording to not only capture the subject matter effectively with lyrical language, but also form it into a pleasing shape to reflect your topic! Achieving this can be more difficult than it sounds. Let’s explore some concrete poem examples from a few children’s picture books.

Whether you prefer the term graphic novel, sequential art, or comics, books written in this style have exploded in popularity this century. The first graphic novel that I read was Raina Telgemeier's SMILE, a memoir about the author navigating school while dealing with the repercussions of a mouth injury. Published in 2010, it led a surge of fans to graphic novels. Since 2010, the sales of books in comic/graphic format have soared to nearly $2 billion in sales, according to Publishing Perspectives.

This popularity has led to an expansion of topics tackled in this style, encompassing both fiction and nonfiction, and targeting ages 4-8 to adult. It was only a matter of time before poetry and the graphic format would join forces in the children's book market.

The two books we'll look at today are collections of poems by author-illustrators who have illustrated them in a comic style: 

Brr! Baby, it's cold outside. Time to cuddle up with a cozy winter-themed picture book. Better yet, time to write one! "But wait," you say. "Hasn't this topic been covered . . . a lot?" True, snow and winter are enduringly popular topics for picture books. For good reason. There's perennial magic in that fluffy white stuff that falls from the sky. The key is to capture that magic in a fresh way. 

This time of year, it always feels to me that Thanksgiving is being squeezed into a smaller and smaller space by Halloween and Christmas. Looking at the holiday picture book section of my library shows the same -- multiple shelves packed with Halloween and Christmas books, but only a few rows of Thanksgiving titles wedged between them.

Luckily, more books that celebrate Thanksgiving, harvest, and gathering together are being added each year. And books that are at the edges of Thanksgiving, (like those about turkeys, pies, feasts), are also more plentiful. Here are three newer titles that fit the (turkey) bill.

​Here at the Rhyme Doctors we're big fans of rhyming and lyrical picture books. But we also know that strict metered rhyme and even loose, free-verse lyricism are not always the best choice for a project.

I recently worked with a client whose manuscript involved a new baby. As part of our check-ups, the Rhyme Doctors recommend mentor texts, so a trip to the library and bookstore was in order.
I found many books written in rhyme that featured babies. The authors of these three diverse titles  found a new twist on the theme of babies and wrote books that I really enjoyed.

It’s pack-your-lunchboxes, sharpen-your-pencils, wake-up-bright-and-early, back-to-school time!

The House Calls blog will be taking a break for the summer! But before we say, "See you later, Alligator!", we'd like to share a few rhyming/lyrical picture books for you to enjoy this summer. Each Rhyme Doctor has chosen two books -- one of their own books, plus another favorite.

Michelle's book, A Place for Rain, illustrated by Blanca Gómez (Norton Young Readers, 2024) focuses on pouring rains, stormwater runoff, and the plans to build a rain garden to constructively deal with all of the rain. Although the story is primarily set in springtime, the theme also fits the "gullywasher" storms on summer days in Illinois, where Michelle grew up, 

A favorite of Michelle's is From Park to Playa: the Trails That Connect Us, by Nell Cross Beckerman, illlustrated by Sophie Diao (Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2024). In addition to being a poet, Michelle is a nature-lover and hiker, so this book speaks to her. She says: