 Looking for good poetry posts? Start here at Margaret at Reflections on the Teche who is sharing nesting poems and a fabulous oak and moon poem. She is also rounding up all the Poetry Friday's post. Who knows Lesléa Newman the fabulous author of SPARKLE BOY, GITTEL's JOURNEY, MISS TUTU'S STAR, and DONOVAN"S BIG DAY to name a few? And for teens, the must read book, October Mourning: A SONG FOR MATHEW SHEPARD. Did you know she also writes for adults? This month her latest book, I WISH MY FATHER, was published. It's a companion book to I CARRY MY MOTHER. Both books honor, give witness, and celebrate her parents.  I was sent an advanced copy of I WISH MY FATHER when Lesléa Newman offered them on Facebook. She include her book about her mother as well. She uses poems such as "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird" by Wallace Stevens or "Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost or "Who Has Seen the Wind" by Christina Rossetti as well as others as inspirations for her mother's poems that chronicle her illness and passing.. It's a wonderful mentor text.  I WISH MY FATHER delves into life without her mother, how her father coped after losing his wife of 60+ years, and aging. It is a loving tribute filled with poems that resonated with this reader. I remember how my father lived without his wife and life partner of 50 + years. Moments of sadness, followed by his flirtatious nature and grappling with issues like giving up driving and moving to assisted living while keeping his dignity. Poems such "My Father Drove My Mother", "The Second Time We Visit" revealing the hard decision to give up driving is crafted with tenderness and a doctor who was brilliant in getting to the point. It brought me back to when my father decided not to drive anymore. There's an aching in the poem "My Father is Slipping" with the words: "...and that's how I know the ladies" man my mother loathed and loved for all her life has finally slipped away" In the final poem, "My Mother is at the Bridge" imagines what it was like when her father and mother met up in heaven. So poignant and the last stanza is perfect. Many of us imagine those reunions the our loved ones pass from this earth. We want to make sense of what is no longer. I have imagined the reunion of my parents. These narrative poems capture Lesléa Newman's love for her dad and who he was as a person in the last acts of his life. Many readers who has lost their parents will be able to connect with these moving poems. If you need a poetry book or two, I highly recommend I WISH MY FATHER and I CARRY MY MOTHER. WINNER WINNER CHICKEN DINNER Gail Aldous won the calendar. Please email me your mailing address, Gail.
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There is much poetry goodness in the world and do we ever need it now. Head over to Sylvia at Poetry for Children. She has the inside scoop of the 2021 titles being born. What a week. I think what lifted my spirits was the arrival of New Year postcards. Linda Mitchell's New Year Poem is based on the Year of the Ox and it happens to be her OLW. That it is a bookmark is a bonus. I love her mixed media art. Janice Scully's tree made me swoon. I love trees. I am ready for some merrymaking and some spring. 2021 Photo and Poem Calendar I have an extra photo and poem desktop calendar. If you would like to win one, please let me know in the comments.
 Meet Johanna Wright, illustrator of THIS POEM IS A NEST Welcome to Poetry Friday, late edition. I just returned from traveling yesterday plus got up at 3:30 AM to take oldest grand to swim practice, and Buster has needed attention (poor guy caught kennel cough) so I'm just getting to this. Some days are like this, right? Our Poetry Friday is hosted by Jama at Jama’s Alphabet Soup I can't remember when it was that I learned that local artist/illustrator/author, Johanna Wright, was illustrating Irene Latham's book, THIS POEM IS A NEST. I was thrilled as I love Wright's work.  How did you decide which nestling poems would get an illustration? It was tough to decide what poems to illustrate! There are so many in this book that called out to me. The editors gave me a lot of freedom to pick what I was inspired to work with. So I made a list of those that called out to me the most and we went from there. Some of the poems I had ideas for right away, and others I played with lots of ideas before settling. It was a really unique and fun book to illustrate! I love the illustration for “Black”, can you share a bit about that? “Black” was one of the illustration ideas that came to me right away. I love to put a bit of magic into my artwork, and it was fun to interpret that poem in that way. In general I tried to apply nature and magic themes throughout the book. It gave me a bit of a framework and helped me feel less overwhelmed with illustration options! I notice a lot of magic depicted and at work work in your illustrations. It seems that it’s a constant theme for you no matter where your art leads. Would you talk about that a little bit? Oh I love that you’ve noticed that and, yes! Magic is a big theme in my life and work. I love to include it as much as possible. Seeing life through a lens of magic makes everything a bit more bearable and fun and full of possibility.  Illustration for the poem, "Hidden Treasure Story"  Illustration for the poem, "Herd of Alpaca in the Rain" I know that often the author and illustrator don’t get to talk about the book. Were you and Irene able to chat about ideas and concepts? Irene and I didn’t chat directly during the making of the book, but our fabulous editor Rebecca Davis did a great job of communicating our thoughts to each other. When the book was done Irene and I did have some exchanges that were really fun! I love her work and felt so lucky to be a part of this book project. GIVE AWAY~ WIN A COPY OF THIS BOOK Comment and I will select a winner and announce it next week.What are your current projects? What would you consider your signature style? Right now I’m working on illustrating and writing a deck of oracle cards and developing a new, illustrated, guided journal. I’ve really enjoyed combining my interests in healing energy and intuition with illustration these past few years. It’s taken me a long time to feel brave enough to share that work, but I feel like people are more receptive than ever to self healing and creative tools, so it feels like a good time for it! My signature style...I love to have my characters a bit sketchy and free. When I'm working in full color you'll usually find a layered painted background. I've been working with a darker palette the last few years, with brightly colored characters layered on top.
What would you like to share that I haven’t ask? I just really loved working on this special book and I’m excited for kiddos to dive in and make their own poems based on this concept! Johanna Wright has illustrated and written several books. My grands and friend's children have been gifted her books. I love her art work, the richness of the colors and the magical quality. Bunnies on Ice by Johanna Wright The Best Bike Ride Ever (by James Proimos) The Orchestra Pit by Johanna Wright Clover Twig and the Magical Cottage by Kaye Umansky Clover Twig and the Perilous Path by Kaye Umansky Celie Valentine Friendship Over by Julie Sternberg Celie Valentine Secret’s Out by Julie Sternberg Celie Valentine Everything’s Changed by Julie Sternberg Keep a Pocket in Your Poem The Magic of Mindset by Johanna Wright This Poem is a Nest by Irene Latham Thanks for stopping in, Johanna and sharing with us about THIS POEM IS A NEST. |
AuthorAll photos and poems in these blog posts are copyrighted to Jone Rush MacCulloch 2006- Present. Please do not copy, reprint or reproduce without written permission from me. 
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