Been to Yesterdays: Poem of a Life [Hardcover]

Lee Bennett Hopkins (Author), Charlene Rendeiro (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

Growing up in the 1950s, young Lee Bennett Hopkins faced the painful events of his parents' divorce, an unstable homelife, and a hand-to-mouth existence. Through it all, he clung to the memory of his beloved grandmother and his hope of becoming a writer. In these emotionally charged autobiographical poems, the celebrated author and anthologist captures a boy's feelings, experiences, and aspirations in the tumultuous period of his life.

Here is a powerful collection that paints bittersweet images of family life: the family car crammed with packing boxes, ready to move Daddy, Mama, and the three children closer to Grandma; Daddy's slippers tossed in the giveaway bag, a sure sign that Daddy is gone for good; the "wobbly staircase" that takes Mama and her young ones to live in yet "another hollow place"; the different schools, where one is always the new boy in class; the teacher, who encourages her new pupil to follow his dreams. Buoyed by the promise of tomorrow, Lee Bennett Hopkins offers an intense coming-of-age work that speaks to today's young readers.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5 Up-This autobiographical cycle of poems is a rare gift, a careful exploration of one life that illumines the lives of all who read it. Been to Yesterdays chronicles Hopkins's 13th year, the year he moved from Pennsylvania to New Jersey, the year his parents divorced, the year his grandmother died, the year he knew he'd be a writer. Each poem is a model of emotional economy. The author writes of seeing packing boxes and knowing the family must leave a too-expensive apartment ("Stowed in cardboard/corners/memories rest/quietly/in paper chests"); he reflects on his grandmother's death and his growing up ("no more/sitting on/Grandma's knee/no more/smiles/or kisses/or joy/no more/darling/no more boy.") The spare elegance of the poems is matched by a spare, clean book design-the words are surrounded by white space and a few pen-and-ink sketches. Like Cynthia Rylant's Waiting to Waltz (Bradbury, 1984), this book offers rich biography in a clear, poetic form. Readers will rejoice that Hopkins decided "To/make/this world/a whole lot/brighter/when/I grow up/I'll/be/a/writer."-Kathleen Whalin, Greenwich Country Day School, CT
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 4^-7. Hopkins distills the experience of his middle-grade years into 28 poems of poignant clarity, achieving in very few words what many prose authors take chapters to tell. The first poem, with its too sprightly picture-perfect family, will make readers suspect that the future holds "another long drawn-out night / another bitter, brutal fight" ending in "the dreaded word--divorce." The Woolworth store is a recurring motif in the poems, including the heartbreakingly honest "Clutching," in which Hopkins learns from his mother that the lady with the kind smile and dark skin is a "nigger," not, according to his grandmother, a good word to choose, because "some words / can hurt / when you / blurt 'em out. / Cause / undue sorrow. / Cause / undue pain." Hopkins transforms bleak events into crystalline moments, concluding with his resolve as a 13-year-old to "make the world a whole lot brighter" by becoming a writer. Good reading and an excellent, unconventional choice for teachers doing units on poetry and autobiography. Susan Dove Lempke

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: Boyds Mills Press; 1 edition (September 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1563974673
• ISBN-13: 978-1563974670
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,672,351 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The class held their breath while they listened..., May 6, 2006

By 

ArtCat (NY City) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Been to Yesterdays: Poems of a Life (Paperback)

Lee Bennett Hopkins, the highly esteemed poet and anthologist, shares his experiences at a difficult and pivotal time in his life through a collection of autobiographical poems. They are beautifully written - simple and full of emotion without sentimentality. The book is recommended for grade 5 and up, but I used it on an ongoing basis with a "street-wise" third grade, many of whom had already endured their share of painful family situations. It helped them open up to their own feelings and to poetry in general. The book includes real photos of his family and of him as a boy, which the kids found fascinating. The fact that he ends it by stating that he will write when he gets older is the icing on the cake: TO/make/this world/a whole lot/brighter when/I/grow up/I'll/be/a writer./I'll write about/some things/I know-/how to bunt/how to throw...a teddy bear/an empty chair.../the love I have inside to share...Yes. /To/make/this world/a whole lot/brighter, when/I grow up/I'll/be/a/writer.

Thank you, Mr. Hopkins...you've done just what you planned.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Poems for Coping Kids, July 2, 2009

By 

mpl80 "mpl80" (NYC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Been to Yesterdays: Poems of a Life (Paperback)

I am a teacher and run a support group for children whose parents are divorced or divorcing. One day, a 4th grade student brought this book to the group. He said that he found it in his classroom after all of the "good ones" were already taken. He asked if he could share two of the poems. As he read them, the other teacher and I had to hold back tears. This is a phenomenal book that kids who are going through family struggles or changes can relate too. One of the students said, "This boy writes really good poems". We explained to him that the photo on the cover was the author when he was a boy experiencing the feelings of these poems. This is a phenomenal book to keep in a classroom on the chance that some quiet child, who may be struggling with issues at home, could be lucky enough to come across.