Thursday, September 10, 2020

Poetry Friday - Not Spring, But A Nest Is Created


     Poetry Friday is hosted by Kiesha Shepard here at Whispers from the Ridge! Thanks, Kiesha for hosting and for those beautiful poems by Paul Lawrence Dunbar!  

      I'm thrilled to be on the blog tour for this marvelous new book by Irene Latham! Here's the list of all who are sharing!




  And here is my post celebrating This Poem is A Nest!


         Out September 29th, time to pre-order! Thanks to Wordsong for the advanced copy!

            Irene has created a book as robins create their nests. Piece by piece, she's selected only the parts that hold together, that make a home for her hatchlings, 161 poems found as she traveled through the words (her woods?), and so many other places, with one single poem. In the forward, Irene explains the "how" of her "nestling" idea, to find poems within the poem, a personal found or blackout poetry. Her one poem is in four parts, an homage to the four seasons.
          Within the book, there are also sections, each celebrated by full-page beautiful illustrations by Johanna Wright. These sections fly from ones like "time" and "animals among us" to "only human" and the ending "out of time".  Johanna also adds some smaller illustrations here and there on the pages, like with the poem "Middle of the Night Question" showing a young girl in bed with a dream scene showing her with wings above, a small bird playing a guitar. The poems make our imaginations soar but having Johanna illustrate her own thoughts is fun, too. And Irene's poems are tiny glimpses into life, like finding a piece of ribbon in a robin's nest!
           For those who want inspiration or for teachers who love new ideas to offer to their students, this is a place for nesting, adding pieces of wordplay challenge and extraordinary fun for poets. 
           Irene's forward invites us all to start:


What words will call to you?
What worlds are waiting in a poem for you to discover? What ideas are hiding that you—and only you—
will nurture until they’re ready
to fly right out of the nest into a
new poem?

            There are additional detailed tips about building nestlings from a nest at the back and an index. In those tips, one rule is that your new nestling can only use words from the body of the poem and in that order, top to bottom. Thus, it helps that Irene adds to the poems' topic in the titles. Choosing what touches with emotion, a favorite topic, and special-sounds is a highlight of all. I decided to break Irene's rules to see if I could write only from words in her titles. Here's what I "found":

Inside the Titles

bedtime
middle of the night
before the game
on the prowl
imagination sets in
close-call
windfall
joy
streams
if you
flyaway

poem found


         Do I have favorite parts of these pages and poems by Irene? Yes! Am I going to share what they are? No! You need to get this book and celebrate it for its creativity, its newness, its being a "nestling"! Thanks, Irene and Johanna for this special book!



30 comments:

  1. Eep! Dear Linda, reading your review, I feel like a newly hatched bird marveling at the sights and sounds of the world... THANK YOU SO MUCH for reading and sharing. I adore your Inside the Titles poem. ADORE it. Love to you, and gratitude, dear friend! xo

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    1. You are welcome, Irene. It was a pleasure to share and I can't wait to have it in my hands! Happy Weekend!

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  2. Thanks for this wonderful review, Linda!! I am so excited about this book. Love the concept and your Inside the Titles poem. :)

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    1. Thanks, Jama, like others, too, I am just sad that I am no longer in the classroom to share this with students writing. I will share with former colleagues!

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  3. I've been excited about this book since first learning about it - looking forward to getting my hands on it! Such a glorious concept. Congrats, Irene - you're making it quite hard for folks to pick a favorite among your books this year. Linda, your "titles" poem is wonderful - I love that I can hear your AND Irene's voices in it! :0) XO

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    1. Thanks much, Robyn! Yes, it is a year to celebrate ALL of the wonderful poetry Irene has given us! I'm glad you enjoyed my "found" poem! It was fun to write.

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  4. I'm eagerly awaiting a copy to review. Thanks for this special peek. I love the entire idea and can't wait to introduce this to students and teachers too. I love that you found a new poem. I have come to love finding poems in text. It's so fun.

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    1. I am so glad you will be sharing with students and teachers, Linda. They will love it as a special experience & a springboard for more!

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  5. Oh, Linda, terrific found poem of titles and I know I will adore beyond adore this gem of Irene's. I am so glad we got a sneak peek last fall and now, soon, we will get to hold and love it. I can't wait. Congratulations to Irene for such a wonderfully, creative new nest of words for EVERYONE to enjoy, and suggestions for other poets to think "outside the nest" !!!!! PS Thanks to Wordsong and Rebecca Davis for bringing this to the world, too.
    Janet Clare F.

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    1. Thank you, Janet. Yes, I remember our time fondly & Rebecca showing us that peek. It is wonderful for sure!

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  6. I can't wait for my copy! The structure of this book is so intriguing. Congratulations to Irene.

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    1. Yes, it's great, a creative way to find new poems! I imagine you'll love it, Laura. Thanks!

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  7. Fabulous creation - it works! "Inside the Titles" is like the inside of one's brain before bedtime. How fun to break the rules and see the pieces come together :)

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    1. Thank you, Fran. The book is very inspiring. You'll see when you read it!

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  8. LOVE your poem, and I can't wait to get my hands on this! I've been crushing on it since I got a peek at the pdf advance copy!

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    1. I envy you your fun with this with your students, Mary Lee. Thanks!

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  9. Your excellent review of Irene's book has me itching to get hold of a copy Linda. Thank you for the alert. I'm off now to place my order...

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    1. That's terrific, Alan. Enjoy every part and thanks much!

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  10. Thank you for sharing this review--I can't wait to read the book. And I adore the poem you found among the titles.

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    1. Thanks, Kay. I hope you love the book in all its intricacies!

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  11. Love your found poem. I also love the Nest poems. "joy
    streams
    if you
    flyaway" I've been releasing monarchs so this has special meaning for me.

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    1. Sweet connection, Margaret! I've loved seeing your pictures of those butterflies! Thanks for telling me.

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  12. Thanks for this special taste of Irene's brand new book,"This Poem Is A Nest!" I liked your intro and especially your "Inside the Titles" poem, how clever you are Linda! And your teaser at the end for not sharing any more… A refreshing, delightful, and sensitive book!

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  13. I am so excited for this book! Thank you for giving us a taste of what is nestled within each page :)

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    1. You're welcome, Kiesha! Enjoy it when you can!

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  14. Thank you for this sneak peek into this nest! I love your found poem, Linda. "Joy/streams" naturally straight from Irene's heart onto the page. I can't wait to get my copy of this amazing book.

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    1. You are right about that "joy", Catherine. Thanks!

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  15. What a brilliant idea to write from the titles--well done, Linda! And as you read already, I love this book too.

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