I am once again away from my desk, but I wanted to pop in and share with you a poem from GONE CAMPING: A Novel in Verse by Tamera Will Wissinger, illus. by Mathew Cordell (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt). A follow-up to the adorable GONE FISHING, this one is told in the voices of Sam, his sister Lucy, and their Grandpa. I was delighted to find an aubade tucked in those pages!
An aubade is an "early morning" poem, often a love song upon the leaving of a lover. They can be wistful and sweet and so often gorgeous. But of course they can have darker flavors as well. More generally they might be considered a poem of beginnings.
Here is a favorite: "Appalachian Aubade" by Traci Brimhall.
And here is an aubade that I wrote. And now for the aubade I found in GONE CAMPING:
Lucy
GOODBYE, LAST NIGHT
Aubade
Little light, a little lighter.
Bit of bright, now burning brighter.
Dark is shifting - drifting away.
Goodbye, last night. Hello, today.
Did it rain? The forest is glimmering.
Leaves and pine needles are shimmering.
How lucky to see the sun's first ray.
Goodbye, last night. Hello, today.
- Tamera Will Wissinger
And here are a few words from Tamera, in response to some simple prompts. Welcome, Tamera!
The Delicious: Finding a fresh, close to my heart story to tell and working with different poetry forms to bring the story to life.
The Difficult: I underestimated the tricky balance of writing a sequel. Before doing it I assumed it would be easier since the characters are familiar, but it's more challenging to ensure that there is enough of that familiarity without telling the same story.
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Thank you, Tamera! Readers, be sure to check out GONE CAMPING and share it with young readers in your life. And I would love to read some aubades by Poetry Friday friends... happy writing!
What a wonderful collection of aubades. Irene, I love your "silver tongues/ and pink light". I also like the light rhymes in the Goodbye to the Night.
ReplyDeleteWhat a perfect poem to greet the day with--camping or not.
ReplyDeleteI loved Gone Fishing...and your post makes me realize I need to read Gone Camping too! Thanks for sharing a trio of aubades.
ReplyDeleteOh this is a form I must try. Thank for the beautiful samples. Leaving is such a universal experience. I feel that tingling in my fingertips. Safe travels, Irene
ReplyDeleteGone Fishing was such fun! And I was unaware that Tamera had written a sequel. I'll have to add Gone Camping to my never ending list of holds at the library. And the aubade form is totally new to me. Always something new to learn at Poetry Friday!
ReplyDeleteI love Tamera's aubade. And yours! Thanks for linking it. (It's nice to read some of your poetry for adults, Irene)
ReplyDeleteLove this book (and its sequel)! Thanks for the feature on aubades.
ReplyDelete"Goodbye, Last Night" is a bright, shining example of an aubade. I saved it. Thanks, Tamera and Irene!
ReplyDeleteThe "Goodbye, Last Night" is so simple, but just right for a voice of a young person. I enjoyed Gone Fishing very much, still need to read this "Gone Camping". Thanks for the explanation of an 'aubade', Irene, and the extra ones, too.
ReplyDeleteI so love "Did it rain? The forest is glimmering. Leaves and pine needles are shimmering." I can see that, feel it, and smell it. Delicious! -- Christie @ https://wonderingandwondering.wordpress.com/
ReplyDeleteI like the range of aubades you've offered us here Irene the light and airy morning one by Tamara Will Wissinger; yours, a passing of time–moodier yet still uplifting; and then Traci Brimhall's darker searching aubade. A new poem to try on. Thanks for this rich assortment!
ReplyDeleteVery (very) late to this post - but I was caught up the week it went live - and alerted to it the following week my Linda Mitchell's post. And finally... here I am! The aubade is a form I want to try for my Antarctic verse novel - so thank-you for these wonderful links. I will tuck THIS link away, to come back to. :)
ReplyDeleteVery (very) late to this post - but I was caught up the week it went live - and alerted to it the following week my Linda Mitchell's post. And finally... here I am! The aubade is a form I want to try for my Antarctic verse novel - so thank-you for these wonderful links. I will tuck THIS link away, to come back to. :)
ReplyDelete