The Popcorn Astronauts
THE POPCORN ASTRONAUTS by Deborah Ruddell is an excellent poetry collection, definitely one of the best of the year, perhaps the best Newbery eligible collection, especially if we think of Marilyn Nelson’s MY SENECA VILLAGE as more of a narrative work of poetry.
All of the poems in THE POPCORN ASTRONAUTS are about food, as the subtitle indicates (“And Other Biteable Rhymes”), but they are further subdivided into seasons. I wasn’t 100% convinced that an additional seasonal motif worked well last year in FIREFLY JULY, and I’m not sure that it works entirely here either, but that is a very small quibble. Here’s one of the summer poems . . .
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Speaking of Peaches . . .
There is so much to say about peaches,
but it’s hard to know where to begin
Do you start with the flowery fragrance,
or the summery sweetness within?
Or the juice, as it stickily trickles
from your lips to the tip of your chin?
Or the sunset of beautiful colors
on the flannelpajamaty skin?
I think “flannelpajamaty” is, like, the best made-up word I’ve heard in ages. Other strengths of the poem: internal rhymes, alliteration, sibilance, and imagery. Those are all in evidence in this fall poem, too, which is a bit sillier . . .
Voyage of the Great Baked Potato Canoes
“Away, away to Green Bean Bay!”
said the Great Baked Potato Canoes.
They left the dock at six o’clock
for the dangerous dinner-plate cruise.
They oozed with steam and sour cream.
They were buried in bacon and chives.
But silverware was everywhere–
and they barely escaped with their lives.
Poetry in picture book format has only been recognized twice in my lifetime–A VISIT TO WILLIAM BLAKE’S INN and DARK EMPEROR–so I’m not terribly optimistic for THE POPCORN ASTRONAUT’s chances, but I do think it’s worthy of consideration.
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About Jonathan Hunt
Jonathan Hunt is the Coordinator of Library Media Services at the San Diego County Office of Education. He served on the 2006 Newbery committee, and has also judged the Caldecott Medal, the Printz Award, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards, and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. You can reach him at hunt_yellow@yahoo.com
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I would put forth Carole Boston Weatherford’s VOICE OF FREEDOM as the best poetic candidate I’ve seen this year (and it’s also a picture book!). Comparing it to another book I’ve proposed, TURNING FIFTEEN ON THE ROAD TO FREEDOM (either of which I would support) I’d say they are about equally distinguished, with VOICE OF FREEDOM stronger in “literary quality” and TURNING FIFTEEN stronger in “quality presentation for children.” I think VOICE OF FREEDOM is stronger than (checking the Goodreads poll) ENCHANTED AIR or RED BUTTERFLY. I haven’t read MY SENECA VILLAGE or AUDACITY.
I’m with you, Leonard, on VOICE OF FREEDOM. There was something about the voice Weatherford created — frank, determined, and lacking in any shred of self-pity — that worked wonderfully well as a vehicle for telling Hamer’s story. (Interesting contrast to the conversation over at the Reading While White blog about the voice Derby used in her Dunbar bio.) But I admit I’m always a sucker for poetry and a poetic voice. Perhaps because of that, while I definitely appreciated TURNING FIFTEEN ON THE ROAD TO FREEDOM, it did not jump out at me as a Newbery contender when I read it several months ago. I’d love to know more from you and others as to why it is.
Monica,
Regarding TURNING FIFTEEN, I am really leaning on the “quality presentation for children” factor, which I am trying to consider more strongly this year in addition to my usual adult “literary quality” opinions. I think it does have a strong argument from the “literary quality” side, but I agree it doesn’t necessarily break away from other front-runners in that regard. Basically, here is a book that I felt was strong as an adult reader, that I think also works for an unusually wide range of ages, certainly younger than other books on similar topics (I even read TURNING FIFTEEN aloud to my then kindergartner, and I don’t plan to read VOICE OF FREEDOM to her, even if it is a “picture book”) but authentic, vivid, and complex enough for older elementary school and middle school. I think that is very rare and worth advertising. In addition Lynda’s character is presented strongly enough that this is not just for an under-represented “find myself” audience — I believe it will speak to the broadest possible readership, and that is worth promoting as well.
I’ll have to take another look at VOICE OF FREEDOM. I was kind of underwhelmed as I felt I got a better sense of Fannie Lou Hamer last year from FREEDOM SUMMER.