Summer Reading 2020: Lower School

Find a tree--a black tupelo or dawn redwood will do--and plant yourself. (It's okay if you prefer a stoop, like Langston Hughes.) With these words, an adventure begins. Kwame Alexander's evocative poetry and Melissa Sweet's lush artwork come together to take ;readers on a sensory journey between the pages of a book.
✸ Listen to the audiobook at the Chapin Library
✸ Check out this eAudiobook at the NYPL

---

Historically poets have been on the forefront of social movements. Woke is a collection of poems by women that reflects the joy and passion in the fight for social justice, tackling topics from discrimination to empathy, and acceptance to speaking out. With Theodore Taylor's bright, emotional art, and writing from Mahogany L. Browne, Elizabeth Acevedo and Olivia Gatwood, kids will be inspired to create their own art and poems to express how they see justice and injustice.

---

How can we make the world a better place? This inspiring resource for middle-grade readers is organized as a dictionary; each entry presents a word related to creating a better world, such as ally, empathy, or respect. For each word, there is a poem, a quote from an inspiring person, a personal anecdote from the authors, and a "try it" prompt for an activity.

---

The neighborhood blacksmith is a quiet and unassuming presence, tucked in his smithy under the chestnut tree. Sturdy, generous, and with sadness of his own, he toils through the day, passing on the tools of his trade, and come evening, takes a well-deserved rest. Longfellow's timeless poem is enhanced by G. Brian Karas's thoughtful and contemporary art in this modern retelling of the tender tale of a humble craftsman.

---

"Look out the window. What do you see? If you are Dr. William Carlos Williams, you see a wheelbarrow. A drizzle of rain. Chickens scratching in the damp earth." The wheelbarrow belongs to Thaddeus Marshall, a street vendor, who every day goes to work selling vegetables on the streets of Rutherford, New Jersey. That simple action inspires poet and doctor Williams to pick up some of his own tools--a pen and paper--and write his most famous poem.

---

Evan Turk showcases the beauty and importance of the National Parks in this gorgeous picture book that takes readers on an amazing tour across the United States. From the rugged coast of Maine to the fiery volcanoes of Hawaii, You Are Home reminds us that every animal, plant, and person helps make this land a brilliant, beautiful sanctuary of life.

---

In a small New England town lives Emily Dickinson, a girl in love with small things--a flower petal, a bird, a ray of light, a word. In those small things, her brilliant imagination can see the wide world--and in her words, she takes wing. From celebrated children's author Jennifer Berne comes a lyrical and lovely account of the life of Emily Dickinson: her courage, her faith, and her gift to the world.

---

This book is powered by 100% natural POETROLIUM(tm) A verse-based energy source (with verbal synergy, of course) This stupendous poetry collection is full of zany characters--from Sleepy LaFeete, who chooses to snooze in the busiest spots, to Mister Adam Hatter and the Lovely Lady Wigg, who had a fig banquet and danced a fancy jig, to a guy named Rexx who uses exxtra Xs every now and then. It's an irresistible feast: whimsical, hilarious, and always inspired.

---

I Remember brings together the work of fourteen award-winning poets and sixteen illustrators of diverse backgrounds who share aspects of their childhood experiences in honest portraits of what it was like for them growing up in the United States. Kwame Alexander takes us on a riotous ride through good times and sad spent with his extended family, which is perfectly captured by Michele Wood's vibrant overflowing and overlapping images. Margarita Engle shares happy memories of learning embroidery from her grandmother, accompanied by Paula Barragán's colorful graphic representation of a granddaughter and grandmother at work.

---

This poetry anthology, edited by Miranda Paul, explores a wide range of ways to be grateful (from gratitude for a puppy, to gratitude for family, to gratitude for the sky) with poems by a diverse group of contributors, including Joseph Bruchac, Margarita Engle, Cynthia Leitich Smith, Naomi Shihab Nye, Charles Waters, and Jane Yolen.

---

Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000) is known for her poems about "real life." She wrote about love, loneliness, family, and poverty--showing readers how just about anything could become a beautiful poem. Exquisite follows Gwendolyn from early girlhood into her adult life, showcasing her desire to write poetry from a very young age. This picture-book biography explores the intersections of race, gender, and the ubiquitous poverty of the Great Depression--all with a lyrical touch worthy of the subject.

---