Poetry Book Review #2 - Poetry Collection

Hopkins, Lee Bennett, ed 1988. Side by Side. Illus. by Hilary Knight. Simon & Schuster, New York.

This anthology of poems includes a nostalgic collection of poems selected to be read aloud from well-loved authors including; Lewis Carroll, Robert Louis Stevenson, Gwendolyn Brooks and Robert Frost. There is a wonderful introduction to the delightful collection and ageless poems. Poems by contemporary authors as well as new voices are included in the anthology. All of the poems in this collection are skillfully grouped according to subjects. There is a poem about seasons of the year, "Spring Again" by Karla Kuskin. In the poem, "The Pickety Fence" by David Mc Cord, you see a little boy tapping along the fence with a stick. If you listen carefully you can almost hear the tapping on the fence. The watercolor illustrations by Hilary Knight are splendid and capture the essence of each and every poem. In the back of the book an index has cleverly been compiled by titles, authors or the first lines of the poems. Not only will you enjoy reading these poems with students, you can sit side-by-side with anyone who enjoys poetry and have fun!