The Horn Book Guide

LITERATURE

Grimes, Nikki

A Pocketful of Poems

32 pp. | Clarion | January, 2001 | Trade ISBN 0-395-93868-6 $$15.00

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Javaka Steptoe. "Mama's window box-- / purple flowers shout the news. / Finally--it's spring!" Celebrating a young girl's urban life throughout the year, a haiku and a simple free-verse poem are paired on each double-page spread. Both verses are inspired by the same word (e.g., spring, pigeon, hot, pumpkin). Steptoe's lively found-object collage illustrations, though sometimes a little cluttered, provide a rich visual experience.

Reviewer: Henrietta M. Smith