poetry friday animal poems by valerie

POETRY FRIDAY: Animal Poems by Valerie Worth

Valerie Worth (1933-1994) is one of my children's poetry idols. A

recipient of the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children in

1991, Worth was an incredible crafter of poems. For the most part, her

poetry spoke of little and seemingly insignificant creatures and

things: crickets, a slug, an amoeba, pebbles, a safety pin, a hose,

weeds, potatoes, and mud. Yet, in her "small" poems, she made the

mundane seem marvelous; she carved the commonplace into fine art.

I was so excited when I opened a package from Farrar, Straus and

Giroux a few weeks ago. Inside the large, padded envelope was ANIMAL

POEMS, the second book of Valerie Worth's poetry to be published

posthumously. It was a review copy sent to me by the publisher.

Imagine a book with twenty-three new Worth poems--poems that were not

published in her earlier collections. It was like a little miracle.

What makes the book even more special is the art done by Steve Jenkins

to illustrate Worth's poetry.

ANIMAL POEMS

Written by Valerie Worth

Illustrated by Steve Jenkins

Published by Farrar Straus Giroux

2007

To quote the beginning lines of a poem by my friend, the late David

McCord:

Books fall open,

you fall in,

delighted where

you've never been...

Yes, I fell right into Worth's book of animal poems. I was delighted

and dazzled by the way she wrote about rabbits and minnows, the

gorilla and the hummingbird--by the way she perceived these animals

with her poet's eye.

ANIMAL POEMS is quintessential Worth--another tour de force of poetry

writing. Its poems are imbued with rich vocabulary and the precise use

of words. The images are original and fresh and the figurative

language is par excellence. If words were carbon, I have little doubt

that Valerie Worth would have been able to fashion flawless diamonds.

A Close-up Look at Some of the Animal Poems

Look at Worth's use of the letter "l" in the poem Snake. As you read

the following lines, you'll see how her language slips off the tongue.

With the sounds of words, she captures the fluid movement of this

legless reptile.

From SNAKE

Loosed

From

Limbs to

Run like water,

Spilled to

A liquid

Silt, a

Slurry

Of scales...

She goes on to compare the snake and its movement...

To one

Glazed

Stream

Of latticed

Panes, or

Mottled mosaic

Of pebbles

Tumbled

Smoothly along,

Their slender

Landslide

Filing

Down

The narrow

Channel

Grooved by

The guiding

Head...

Look at Worth's use of language and rhythm to describe how minnows,

"glisteners that shine," and their coordinated movements in a school

make them appear to be the body of one fish.

From MINNOWS

That their slivers

Sift together

In a scintillating

Mesh,

A smooth-

Linked flesh,

Like the whole

Rushing shimmer

Of a solid

Silver fish.

Here is the full text of Bear--along with its accompanying

illustration by Steve Jenkins. Note how the bear stares out at us from

the page--how Jenkins captured the essence of Worth's poem.

BEAR

The bear's fur

Is gentle but

His eye is not:

It burns our

Way, while

He walks right

And left, back

And forth, before

Us: he

Looks, and we

Look, and his

Hot eye

Stings out

From the dark hive

Of his head

Like a fierce

Furious

Bee.

I am always surprised by Worth's poetry, in awe of her exquisite use

of language. Who else could describe a gorilla as

"that/Glaring/Legendary/Ogre/Of rough/Black iron/And ebony?" Who else

could imagine a porcupine to be "Held fast/In the thicket/Of its

own/Thorns?"

For the book, Steve Jenkins set most of his animal collages against

plain white or blue or black backgrounds. There is a simple elegance

to his illustrations--just as there is an easy elegance to the words

of Valerie Worth. His art is a fine and respectful complement to her

poetry.

ANIMAL POEMS is an outstanding poetry book. Every two-page spread

contains a gem--a finely cut, multi-faceted poem, which sparkles like

a diamond in the sunlight--a poem that rests on a platinum setting

carefully crafted by Jenkins. I think this will be one of the most

notable children's books of 2007.

Excerpts from ANIMAL POEMS by Valerie Worth, pictures by Steve

Jenkins. Text copyright (c) 2007 by George Bahlke. Pictures copyright

(c) 2007 by Steve Jenkins. Used by permission of Farrar, Straus and

Giroux, LLC. All rights reserved.

A Little More Worth

Valerie Worth was an artist who worked in a medium of words--and with

words, she was able to create distinctly defined images that a reader

could picture in his/her mind's eye. She saw--and showed us how to

see--the wonder of the "small" things. She could make the most mundane

objects, insignificant creatures--and even garbage--seem like

treasure.

From EARTHWORMS

(This poem first appeared in MORE SMALL POEMS.)

Put on the palm,

Still rough

With crumbs,

They roll and

Glisten in the sun

As fresh

As new rubies

Dug out of

Deepest earth

Some people think that young children don't like poems with lots of

imagery and figurative language. Some people believe that young

children only enjoy humorous poetry or poetry that rhymes. I do not

agree with them. Children often come to value what the adults in their

lives value. If children are exposed to fine poetry like that of

Valerie Worth, most will come to understand and appreciate it. I

shared Worth's poetry with my second grade students often. Some of

them came to appreciate her poetry so much that they tried to emulate

her writing style when they were creating their own poems.

I believe there is no better way to teach children how to write well

than to read them fine literature--especially poetry. And Valerie

Worth was--and always will be--one of the finest writers of poetry for

children.

For those of you who may doubt my words, I provide the following:

STARS

by Valerie Worth

(This poem can be found in STILL MORE SMALL POEMS and ALL THE SMALL

POEMS AND FOURTEEN MORE, both published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux.)

While we

Know they are

Enormous suns,

Gold lashing

Fire-oceans,

Seas of heavy silver flame,

They look as

Though they could

Be swept

Down, and heaped,

Cold crystal

Sparks, in one

Cupped palm.

BURNING STARS

by Shaina, Grade 2

March 25, 1996

When I look up in space

at night

I see stars

that look like cold silver crystals

so small they could fit

in my hand.

But I know

the stars are giants

exploding gases

and bubbling with red flames.

I hope I proved my point!

Other Poetry Books by Valerie Worth

ALL THE SMALL POEMS

AND FOURTEEN MORE

Illustrated by Natalie Babbitt

Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1994

PEACOCK AND OTHER POEMS

Illustrated by Natalie Babbitt

Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2002

Learn More About Valerie Worth

Valerie Worth Biography at Farrar, Straus and Giroux: Books for Young

Readers

Profile of Valerie Worth at the NCTE website