Singer, Marilyn and Grimly, Gris. 2001. MONSTER MUSEUM. Hyperion Books for Children: New York.
Rhythm
The text is arranged in a way that when read aloud you hear a beat or can keep a tempo. The words make sense as you read the poem and does not lose tempo. The text itself is written in short sentences that do not span from one margin to the other. They are almost centered on the page for some poems and then others have two sets of text side by side.
Rhyme
The poems range from five lines to thirty-one lines. The poems do have some lines that the last word will rhyme with the last word of a line below the first line. The rhyming words chosen for the text do not detract from the meaning.
Sound
Within the book there are several poems where a grouping of text will begin with the same word for the first line or the same word for all of the lines in the group. In a few poems there is repeating text.
Language
The language used within the text is refreshing. The subject is a Monster Museum so there are several different types of monsters in the book. There is a “Glos-Scary” with definitions for all of the monsters listed in the poems. This will be helpful to readers who are unfamiliar with the verbiage. The text used will enrich the vocabulary of the reader. For example, the word “vocation” is used along with the word “job”.
Imagery
The illustrations for the poems are creepy but not scary. The monsters are drawn with some cartoonish qualities along with the backgrounds and props. The children visiting the museum are “taken” by a monster as you read through the book. The ending of the book explains why this happens to the children. This is not explained in the text until the end.
Emotions
This poem book is for pure enjoyment. I can see the reader laughing in some parts and cringing at others. This would make a good read aloud in October.
Poetry Books
The book is arranged with twenty-one poems and the “Glos-scary”. The book is appropriate for first grade and above. This book of poems would appeal to children. The poems are in the order that the children, in the story, take a tour of the Monster Museum.
Awards and Recognitions
Positive reviews
Publisher’s Weekly
School Library Journal
Kirkus Reviews
Connections
This would be an excellent book to read to the class is students are having discussions of Monsters in October. The illustrations are non-threatening and many are humorous. I would also pair this with Maurice Sendak’s WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE. You can extend this farther by including monster writing and a monster art activity. The monster art activity can be extended by using recyclable materials.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
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