Customer Reviews

A Jar of Tiny Stars: Poems by Ncte Award-Winning Poets

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If you catch a firefly
and keep it in a jar,
You may find that
you have lost
A tiny star.

If you let it go then,
back into the night,
You may see it
once again
Star bright.

Lillian Moore's touching poem, which lends this inspiring anthology its name, captures the healing power of poetry, which Bernice Cullinan dedicates to her late son, Jonathan Paul. Rather than having adults select the poems in this jewel of a book, Cullinan polled the persons for whom these poems were written, children. The poems, though simple and easy to read, reflect on deep and personal thoughts; they are also wonderfully humorous. At the end of the book, in a section titled "About the Poets," Dr. Cullinan lets the poets speak for themselves, adding additional information sparingly and tastefully.

These poems are a joy to behold, not only for children, but for adults as well.

Compiled and edited by Bernice E. Cullinan, A Jar of Tiny Stars is a celebration of poetry written by NCTE award-winning poets Arnold Adoff, John Ciardi, Barbara Esbensen, Aileen Fisher, Karla Kuskin, Myra Cohn Livingston, David McCord, Eve Merriam, Lilian Moore, and Valerie Worth. Each poem has a very special appeal for children. My Cat And I: When I flop down/to take a rest/my cat jumps up/upon my chest.//She kneads my sweater/with her paws.../and sometime seven uses claws.//She rubs my chin/and purrs away, as if I am/a game to play! (Aileen Fisher)

A jar of Tiny Stars: Poems by Ncte Award -winning poets is an awesome book. The authors use colorful words, which help transcend beautiful pictures in a readers mind. I believe every reader should read this book.