Poetry Friday--A Little Bitty Man

A brand spankin' new book in our collection is A Little Bitty Man: And Other Poems for the Very Young by Haldan Rasmussen, translated from the Danish by Marilyn Nelson and Pamela Espeland, and illustrated by Kevin Hawkes [J 831 RAS]. It's a delightful collection of short, mostly humorous poems, but I wouldn't exactly say the poems are for the "very young." I interpret "very young" as toddlers to preschoolers. The poems in this collection, although simple, would probably be better appreciated by a slightly older audience, say kindergarten to second grade. (Your mileage opinion may vary.)

The poems, combined with the whimsical illustrations of Kevin Hawkes, make this book a treat!

Here's one of my favorites:

Those Fierce Grown-up Soldiers

Those fierce grown-up soldiers
who shoot guns and fight
should learn from us children
to fight a war right.
First, fight with toy guns.
Then, if your war won't end,
you tickle your enemy
into a friend.

The Poetry Friday Round-Up is taking place today at Great Kid Books.