Poetry_Insectlopedia by Douglas Florian

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Florian, Douglas. 1998. INSECTLOPEDIA. Ill. by Douglas Florian. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt Brace & Company. ISBN 0152013067.

2. PLOT SUMMARY
Florian provides a collection of twenty-one poems. The theme of his collection is centered on insects. Some insects like the caterpillar and the black widow are familiar, while the Io Moth and Mayfly may not be as common to children and adults alike.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Each poem is brief in length. They offer simple facts with academic vocabulary, and humorous words that rhyme. For example, “/The Caterpillar/ /She eats eight leaves at/ /To fill her,/ /Which leaves her like a/ /Fatterpillar,//Then rents a room inside/ /A pupa,.…/” In addition, several of the poems’ text is positioned to make a connection with the insect. The Army Ants for instance, begins appropriately with “/Left/ /Right/ /Left/ /Right/….” The words are printed independently on a single line in its respective margin. In The Whirligig Beetles, Florian positions the text in circular motion, and The Inchworm text begins at the bottom of the page, swoops upward and drops down, giving it the movement of an inchworm. Lastly, Florian’s watercolor paintings are festive and child-like. This is a most enjoyable collection of poems and one worth adding to the library!

4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
Starred review in SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “Clearly a wonderful book.”
An ALA Notable Book
Winner of the 1995 Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award
Review in THE BULLETIN: “The fluid and inventive watercolors set the verse off perfectly….Avid junior birdmen and those with a taste for vivid poetry will find this worth sticking their beaks into.”
An American Bookseller Pick of the Lists
Review in KIRKUS REVIEWS: “The witty poems, deliberately anthropomorphic, employ mistaken identities and mix-ups, as well as punning, wordplay, and internal rhyme, all to humorous effect.”
Starred review- in SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “This one…is definitely ‘Devine!/Delish!’”

5. CONNECTIONS
*If you are uncertain about introducing poetry to children as young as five, this is the book to do it with.
*Other books on poetry or poems by Florian: BOW WOW MEOW MEWO: IT’S RHYMING CATS AND DOGS, BEAST FEAST: POEMS, DINOTHESAURUS, THE SEED and many more.
*Visit http://floriancafe.blogspot.com for more of Florian’s books.