A Child’s Book of Poems
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A Child's Book of Poems: A charming anthology of 200 poems, first published in 1969 are among literature’s most beloved. And Gyo Fujikawa’s illustrations depict children interacting.
A Child’s Book of Poems
William Blake, Kate Greenaway, Emily Dickinson: the writers in this charming anthology of 200 poems, which was first published in 1969, are among literature’s most beloved.
And Gyo Fujikawa’s appealing illustrations depict children of all races sweetly interacting, as well as an engagingly rendered menagerie of animals and the natural world in all its wonderment.
Among the verses that children will love are Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s “Christmas Bells,” Lewis Carroll’s “The Melancholy Pig,” and Eugene Fields’ “Wynken, Blynken, and Nod,” along with proverbs, limericks, nursery rhymes, and folk songs.
About the Illustrator:
Gyo Fujikawa (1908-1999) made a career in the advertising world and also enjoyed a lengthy stint at the Walt Disney Studios where she designed the large book version of Fantasia. In 1957, she illustrated her first picture book, A Child’s Garden of Verses. Fujikawa’s books have been translated into 17 languages and are read in more than 22 countries. Read more about her here.
A Few Reviews:
“I was looking for “real” poetry in a book intended for children. In other words, poems by known authors which would be appreciated by adults, but with themes and forms suitable for children, with pleasing rhythms and imagery, presented with attractive illustrations. The example in my mind was “The Daffodils” (aka “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud”) by William Wordsworth. This book is pretty good, and even includes “The Daffodils.” If it included only the best of its content, I’d give it 5 stars. Lots of good selections and sweet illustrations. I could skip some of the odd doggerel and weird themes. Fortunately my son seems to have some taste (and perhaps picks up on our dampened enthusiasm) and doesn’t ask for the lesser stuff repeatedly. He enjoys this poetry collection (at age 2), and so do we.” -Amazon Reviewer
“I am thrilled with this book of poetry for my 2.5yo. The pictures are nostalgic and keep her attention while I’m reading both the short and longer poems. The artwork alone is very engaging and keeps her attention for sometime. To be honest, I have never really enjoyed poetry myself, but this collection is filled with sweet little pieces I remember from childhood, and I find the collection to be very enjoyable. Much of what I read to her she doesn’t understand, but she actively chooses this book at storytime and requests I repeat particular selections. We have recently checked out several poetry and nursery rhyme collections from the library, including A Child’s Garden of Verses, Richard Scary’s Nursery Rhymes, Julie Andrews’ compilations, and Carolyn Kennedy’s Poems to Learn by Heart. While we love them all, I am partial to this collection at the moment! I am very glad I purchased this copy for our personal library.” -Amazon Reviewer
