The Golden Books Family Treasury of Poetry

Rating:
Summary: Buy one for all the nieces and nephews!
Review: I am so happy that they have reissued this book! I have waited for years hoping that they would. I received this book as a child and read it so much that it fell apart. I am going to buy each of my own children one and one for my favorite nieces and nephews. Poems of naughty and nice children, tongue twisting limericks, poems for every month and season are all included. If you need a sample of any great American poet look no further than this book. I am someone who loves to read and when people ask me about my favorite book this book is the winner no matter how old I get.

Rating:
Summary: Past is not prologue, alas.
Review: I have been looking for another copy of this book for years - my old original has literally fallen apart from use. Most of the poems here are old friends. Introduce young people to Custard the Dragon, and the accessible parts of Shakespeare, and The Highwayman, and Kipling and ..... well, you get the picture. I'll be buying copies for myself (I'm considerably older than 8!), and for my nieces, and god daughter. O frabjous day!

Rating:
Summary: An old treasure in a new book cover!
Review: I was cleaning out some boxes of children's books, keeping what I consider classic while giving the rest to my grandchildren or to the libraries. I doubled-back between this current edition and the previous editions to make sure this was the same one...it is, and I highly recommend this. I took a class in children's literature back in the 70's and I fondly remember it as being one of the most enjoyable classes I had in college the first time around. This book lasted through my children's growing up and is now going through new useage with my grandchildren. I love the way this book is organized. If you have a child with specific interests such as limericks (and I know few children who don't get a kick out of limericks) you can go to that section without delay.

I grew up with Joan Walsh Anglund poignant drawings. They are not particularly 'great' art, but for children and in this book, they are vastly more suitable than the poorly drawn and maddening stuff put out in cartoons (especially of the Pokemon variety which will set off seizures in children). They say the age of this book is for four years to eight year olds. That isn't true. Every parent should try to take the time to read to all children in whatever form necessary...and it should start at age one. Reading aloud (or signing books) to your children not only makes essential bonds, but it also teaches children what you think is important, and also teaches them how to stop and pay attention. The massive complaints about restless children and the abuse of labeling (ADD/ADHD) has its beginnings in simple things such as turning the television/computers off and reading to your children.

... should be showing the pictures and pages of this book in a sampling, so that parents can make informed decisions about children's books. If you only get one child's book this year, get this one and sit down with your children and read.

Karen Sadler,
Science Education,
University of Pittsburgh

Rating:
Summary: Read it with your kids!
Review: I was given this book at age 7 or 8: one of my first "big kid "books that wasn't a hand-me down from my sisters. No one had to make me read poetry,after that!I adore the illustrations; they just seem so perfect for each poem! There are dozens I can still recite from memory.
When my son was 4, I got the book out of storage and read him, "The Highwayman"- and he was hooked! We rode with Paul Revere and asked each other: "I'm nobody! Who are you?" When my daughter found an abandoned nest of baby birds and we knew they would die- we read "Four Little Foxes" and grieved together, and later laughed over "The Owl Critic." These poems and drawings are like old friends to us all.
After all these years, it's rather the Velveteen rabbit of the bookshelf: pages dog-eared and falling out from years of use. I am ordering a new copy for my daughter's 12th birthday (don't pay attention to the age range listed for the book) so she'll have a copy to pass on to her children. It's just a wonderful selection of all types of poems, sure to please the children AND the adults who read to them! Start tonight!

Rating:
Summary: The Golden Books Family Treasury of Poetry
Review: Incredible book of poetry for children and adults alike. Timeless selections. Many will remind you of your own childhood. This collection should be required reading in all schools. Also, the illustrations are most memorable and will capture young imaginations. I'm so glad to have rediscovered this book after over 3 decades!

Rating:
Summary: The Golden Books Family Treasury of Poetry
Review: Incredible book of poetry for children and adults alike. Timeless selections. Many will remind you of your own childhood. This collection should be required reading in all schools. Also, the illustrations are most memorable and will capture young imaginations. I'm so glad to have rediscovered this book after over 3 decades!

Rating:
Summary: A Great Book
Review: This is a wonderful anthology, but while Amazon's notes indicate an age appropriate level of 4-8, it is much more appropriate for adolescents. The humor, the epic poems, the vingettes of life are a great introduction to poetry for young people. Paul Revere's Ride, for example, is best read by upper elementary or middle school students who know some Colonial History.