Introducing very little children to the beauty of language is something many of my writing friends and colleagues love to do. Jane Yolen, a wonderful writer and poet who has charmed children with her rhyming How do dinosaur books, now brings us a new poetry collection that was written for babies and toddlers. Throughout the book wonderful rhymes are paired with Jane Dyer's delightful illustrations.
Jane Yolen
Illustrated by Jane Dyer
Poetry Picture Book
For infants to children age 5
Simon and Schuster, 2013, 978-1-4169-4898-8
Between them author and poet Jane Yolen and illustrator
Jane Dyer have nine grandchildren, and they have both spent countless hours
playing and spending time with these precious children. Not surprisingly, they
believe that “literature begins in the cradle” and that “rhymes are our
earliest cultural artifacts.” Mother Goose rhymes and simple pieces of verse
that have a singsong element should be a vital part of every little child’s
life. In this book such poems are paired with Jane Dyer’s deliciously sweet and
lovely artwork to give little children and their grownups a gift that they can
share for hours and hours.
Many of the
poems in this book will be familiar, including the first poem, The Rose is Red. Later on Pat-A-Cake, Girls and Boys Come out to Play
and This Little Pig appear. These
Mother Goose rhymes have been charming little children for generations.
In addition to
these old favorites, there are new poems that Jane Yolen has written, many of
which explore everyday moments in a child’s day. There is the poem Oops, Whoops, which tells the story of
what happens when a cup full of milk falls to the floor. The child is comforted
and told not to “yowl” for Daddy is coming “With a great big towel.” There is also
a poem about piggyback rides and one about going to the supermarket to “Ride
down every aisle.” In other poems we share a ride in a swing, slip down a slide,
and play in a sandbox. In Nap Time we
encounter a child who is not sleepy and who wants to go to the park. After all,
how can one sleep when “it’s not dark.” The poem comes to a close with the
child asking for a blankie, a hankie and a story, but before the story can be
told we hear a “Zzzzzzzzzzzzz.”
This collection
of poems is a perfect title to give new parents or grandparents as a gift.
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