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The Pleasure of Rhythmic Rhyme: A Passel of Poems for Children
Melissa Glenn Haber
Issue 117, March/April 2000

"April is the cruelest month," wrote T. S. Eliot. His followers tried to improve the situation by declaring April National Poetry Month. Here, then, in honor of April, are books that place the best words in the best possible order: some poetry, some books in rhyme. We begin with those for the very young and travel upward.

Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb, by Al Perkins, illustrated by Eric Gurney. Even the preverbal crowd is charmed by Gurney's hipster beatnik monkeys as they drum their way through this board book. The text sings and swings ("Hand, hand, fingers, thumb / Dum ditty dum ditty dum dum dum"), and the pictures bring a smile to the face. Baby to Preschool. Random House, 1998.

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The Lucy Cousins Book of Nursery Rhymes, by Lucy Cousins. There are dozens of illustrated Mother Goose collections; hardly a master has not tried his or her or hand at it. My favorite is this collection by Lucy Cousins of Maisy fame, which includes some of the more obscure and delightful rhymes. In addition, the colorful, thickly outlined drawings are simply gorgeous. This collection has been broken into four board books, all with nursery-rhyme titles. An earlier version from 1990, entitled The Little Dog Laughed, has the original British forms of the poems (for example, the little dog laughed to see "such sport," rather than see "such fun"). Baby to Preschool. Dutton Books, 1999.

Animal Crackers: A Delectable Collection of Pictures, Poems, and Lullabies for the Very Young, illustrated by Jane Dyer. Dyer's watercolor paintings teeter between the lovely and the sentimental, but she always draws from a gentle and appealing palette. The poems in this collection are taken from varied sources and traditions. You'll find something old, something new, something borrowed - and something fresh and surprising! Two abridged board-book versions (Animal Crackers: Bedtime and Animal Crackers: Nursery Rhymes) are also available. Baby to Preschool. Little Brown and Co., 1996; Board book versions Little Brown and Co., 1998.

A Very Special House, by Ruth Krauss, illustrated by Maurice Sendak. Since winning the Caldecott medal, this exceptional book has fallen into undeserved obscurity. With Maurice Sendak's innocent, mischievous drawings and Krauss's wonder-filled text, A Very Special House is a rollicking hymn to the imagination. The book is impossible to read slowly or quietly, especially as it crescendos to its climax: "Whoop whoop whoop / there's something in the soup / And that's not all / They're playing toesy woesys down the hall hall hall." Baby to Preschool. Michael Di Capua, 2001.

So Say the Little Monkeys, by Nancy Van Laan, illustrated by Yumi Heo. Van Laan's compelling rhymes show how easy it is for monkeys to get caught up in dancing and playing, even if it means they'll get cold and wet in the rain. Heo's original style, which includes pen and ink, oil, and collage, is a pleasure to behold. Preschool to Early Elementary. Atheneum, 1998.

The Owl and the Pussycat, by Edward Lear, illustrated by Jan Brett. There are several illustrated versions of Edward Lear's fabulous poem. Jan Brett's has the advantage of detailed drawings with an extra side story for children to follow. Preschool to Early Elementary. Paper Star, 1996.

Father Fox's Pennyrhymes, by Clyde Watson, illustrated by Wendy Watson. Hooray! At long last, this homey masterpiece by the Watson sisters is back in print. Endearing new nursery rhymes are accompanied by pictures of foxes a-plenty. The poems range from delightful nonsense ("Dilly Dilly Picallily / Tell me something very silly / There was a chap / His name was Bert / He ate the buttons off his shirt") to dandling songs ("Nanny, Nanny, Bumblebee / Nanny is my cup of tea") to lullabies ("Sleep, Sleep, Sleep my baby / Sings the sweet cuckoo / When your daddy comes back home / He'll bring a toy for you." Preschool to Early Elementary. HarperCollins, 2001.

Eric Carle's Animals, Animals, illustrated by Eric Carle. This book comprises animal poems both funny and obtuse, as well as haiku and other non-Western forms. Eric Carle's distinctive collages are bright and friendly. Preschool to Early Elementary. Philomel, 1989.

A House is a House for Me, by Mary Ann Hoberman, illustrated by Betty Fraser. Houses are the theme of this humorous and inventive offering: gloves house fingers and boxes house crackers. Fraser's drawings are jammed with interesting references to other books, and Hoberman's rhythmic text never lets up. The author ends with the important reminder that "each animal known / Has a house of its own / And the earth is a home to us all." A second book by the pair, The Cozy Book, is a wonderful paean to all that's gemutlich in a child's world. Preschool to Early Elementary. Viking Press, 1978. The Cozy Book. Voyager Books, 1999.

If I Ran the Circus, by Dr. Seuss. The undisputed master of children's rhyme wrote some of his most tongue- and ear-pleasing verse for this book. The story's star, young Morris McGurk, takes center stage as he imagines filling a vacant lot with a circus. Dr. Seuss's grammatical acrobatics are a perfect complement to the death-defying feats described. As Morris McGurk would say, this volume is: Colossal! Stupendous! Astounding! Terrific! Tremendous! Preschool to Early Elementary. Random House, 1956.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, by Robert Frost, illustrated by Susan Jeffers. Newly reissued, Frost's deceptively simple poem is set in Jeffers's landscape of silver and white snow-laden trees. Another children's book, The Runaway, features Frost's poem by the same name. Glenna Lang's enchanting cutouts depict the frenzy of a young colt separated from its mother. Preschool and up. Dutton Books, 2001. The Runaway, David R. Godine, 1998.

Paul Revere's Ride, by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, illustrated by Ted Rand. There are several illustrated versions of Longfellow's famous poem; I love the intense watercolors that accompany this one. Also featured is an afterword explaining the text (and its inaccuracies) to children and their parents. Preschool and up. Puffin, 1996.

Melissa Glenn Haber lives in Somerville, Massachusetts with her husband, Ezra, and their daughter, Mehitabel (4), and twin sons, Tobit and Linus (2). She has written several articles on parenting issues. Her first novel, Hercules Amsterdam, will be published by Dutton Children's Books in June 2003.