Annabel Lee [Paperback]

Edgar Allan Poe (Author), Gilles Tibo (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 6 and up | Grade Level: 1 and up

Edgar Allan Poe’s dream poem is as close to music as words can ever come. First published on October 9, 1849 – two days after Poe’s death – this haunting, lyric poem is thought to have been written in memory of Poe’s young wife, Virginia, who died in 1847. Gilles Tibo has set the poem in his native Quebec, where the narrator and his childhood love Annabel Lee discover the beauty of the rugged, wind-swept Gaspé Peninsula. But when Annabel Lee dies and is borne away as mysteriously as she had come, the dream goes on, refreshed each time that the moon beams and the stars shine down upon the great rock of Percé that becomes her sepulcher.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The subtly exquisite sky- and seascapes in Tibo's paintings more than compensate for his vacant-featured lovers in this interpretation of the classic poem. All ages.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 6 Up Tibo's stagy illustrations, lightly misted and suffused with a mildly eerie inner glow, form an adequate accompaniment to Poe's famous paean to idyllic love lost. Ignoring the vacant-eyed faces of the children, one can even admire the modulation of the artist's palette, as the initial pastels change to a darkling combination of blues and blacks complementing the downward spiral of the text. The real question, however, is not one of synchronizing words and pictures but of choice: why illustrate this particular poem at all, let alone in picture book format? The language is certainly vivid enough to evoke its own images, unaided by artistic intervention. Although ``Annabel'' has doubtless plucked many a prepubescent heart string (when longing for lost love may seem much less threatening than hanky panky in the last row at the local movie theater), these illustrations are too young for that age group. And what the post-sandbox set could or would make of ``sepulcher there by the sea/ In her tomb by the sounding sea,'' is something else altogether. Such expenditure of artistic effort should be preceded by educated selection. Kristi Thomas Beavin, Arlington County Public Library, Va.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Paperback: 24 pages
• Publisher: Tundra Books (September 19, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0887762301
• ISBN-13: 978-0887762307
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 9.2 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,713,268 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not enough stars for this poem, October 13, 2000

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Annabel Lee (Paperback)

This poem is a fascinating example of the poetic genius of Poe. While it is often thought of as a poem for younger readers, anyone who appreciates the subtle tragedy that is Poe will be deeply moved by this piece - in fact, only a muture reader can fully appreciate all of its' complexity. A must for any fan of Poe, good poetry, American literature, or just plain good writing. Furthermore, you don't have to be a scholar to appreciate this one. Its' appeal is universal, and its' understandability is high. It's just a darn good read.

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent, July 6, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Annabel Lee (Hardcover)

this is one of poe's greatest poems. there is so much love in his words for his wife (who the poem was intended for but he changed her name to Annabel Lee). A must read!