Hello and Happy Poetry Friday! Be sure to visit Mary Lee at A(nother) Year of Reading for Roundup. My friend and fellow author/poet Sylvia Liu is here to celebrate her newly released MANATEE'S BEST FRIEND. Congratulations, Sylvia!
Before we get to that, I invite you to read a letter I wrote to 11-Year-Old Me. (This was really rewarding and surprising experience. I discovered I mostly wanted to be encouraging... and I didn't want to reveal much about the future. I highly recommend each of you write such a letter!)
Yes, I also wrote a new ArtSpeak: FOUR SEASONS poem. I confess to feeling a bit weary of summer art (!)... none of the paintings I selected at the start of the season are particularly calling to me... so I found another one! You'll find the poem at the end of this post.
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And now: Please welcome author Sylvia Liu, who is a kind, generous, and inspiring human! Learn more about her current and forthcoming books at her website. Today's interview focuses on MANATEE'S BEST FRIEND, which released this week!
The Difficult
SL: I wanted to create a unique friendship story, where my main character, Becca Wong Walker, is friend with a manatee, and where a dolphin and the manatees become friends. A challenge was to be accurate scientifically about how manatees and dolphins act, wile making it engaging and fun for readers.
The Delicious
SL: I loved going on a fact-finding research trip to northwest Florida, to see manatees in their natural habitat and to immerse myself in th environment. I also met with middle school students and local environmentalists to learn about manatees and the risks they face. I was lucky enough to snorkel with manatees, which I discovered were much larger than I imagined. [Note from Irene: Sylvia included a wonderful pic of her snorkeling with a manatee, but Blogger was too jealous to let me post it, apparently... could NOT get it in the post without wrecking all the text. Weird. So please use this space to imagine beautiful Sylvia floating just above a giant manatee!]
The Fresh
SL: I learned that manatees are a critical part of the shallow river systems. They act like lawnmowers eating the seagrass beds and encouraging grass to grow. They also stir up nutrients for baby fish to eat.
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Thank you, Sylvia! I have yet to meet a manatee IRL, so this book helps meet a need for me.
And now, here's my latest art poem. Thank you so much for reading!
A Summertime Story
You'll find me in the apple tree
on hazy summer mornings. Up, up,
I climb—hand over knee.
Don't worry if I disappear.
You'll find me in the apple tree,
pockets full of cakes and tea—
and in my hand a book to read
to busy birds and beetles. Want a story?
You'll find me in the apple tree.
- Irene Latham
Oh that poem is lovely. Up in the apple tree. I wish I had written it. You are such a mentor, Irene with your gifts of poetry and beauty all the time. I know someone who will love the Manatee book. For me summer is brief and glorious. It is going too too fast, but so much fun. Hugs to you.
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ReplyDeleteOops! I also need to come back and read all I have missed due to the busy life of being grandma, but it is the best and I am glad I can do that at this stage of my life.
DeleteJanet Clare F.
Irene, what a lovely post. Thank you for the interview with Sylvia Lee. I've yet to see a manatee too.
ReplyDeleteI love the image of reading up in the apple tree--a lovely summertime poem. Oh, I would love to disappear into an apple tree with my pockets loaded with cakes and tea.
So much to love in this post: the letter to yourself, the interview with Sylvia (at the Columbus Zoo, you can get practically nose-to-nose with the manatees in their brilliant exhibit -- SUCH fun), and your summer poem held like a hug by the first/last line!
ReplyDeleteAs always, a lot going on here! Loved meeting Sylvia. I'm personally not in an encouraging spot to write to my 11-year-old self, but I'd write to a manatee, and I'd do it using that nice little form you used...thanks for the note a few weeks ago, also--I appreciated that!
ReplyDeleteWhat fun interview questions...and I AM imagining Sylvia Liu swimming next to a giant manatee. What fun! There is a fabulous museum in Sarasota that we took our kids to several times...the Mote Museum...that has a lovely pair of old manatees that give visitors an up close encounter. They are so sweet in their way. Reading in an apple tree? Yes, please!
ReplyDeleteI was amazed at the size of a manatee in real life. Thanks for the interview. I read your lovely letter to yourself. Your poem makes me recall picking figs recently. I had to get into the bush to get to some of them. Remind me what this form is with the repeated line in 1, 2, 3 position.
ReplyDeleteOh, Irene. Jealous Blogger.😹Thanks for the giggle. I was also encouraged that you are a bit weary (!) of summer art. You always make them look so effortlessly joyful and I am constantly in awe of you and your poetry - but you are human, too - such a lovely human! This apple tree climb has all the flavours.
ReplyDeleteOh my, I just saw about Manatee's Best Friend by Sylvia early this week & put it on hold from my library. My older granddaughter studied manatees in school & they are a favorite animal of her & all the family. I've seen them in Florida & know there is a recent alarm about them, can't wait to read the book! As for your summer poem, hiding out in an apple tree may be a good remedy for those summer blues! Lovely about those "birds and beetles"!
ReplyDeleteIn the apple tree is a great place to be.
ReplyDeleteIrene, after a busy weekend, I finally got to read your posts. I love your letter to self and left you a message there. In this segment of your post, your interview with Sylvia Liu has me dreaming of the picture you could not share followed by your ekprastic poem. i liked that you climbed into the tree (and painting) and crafted a lovely summertime story poem complete with a book for summer reading "to busy birds and beetles". What a lovely way to enjoy a summer day.
ReplyDeleteThank you for introducing me to Sylvia Liu! I know quite a few readers who will love Manatee's Best Friend. Reading your poem was like the scene in "Ratatouille" when Ego is transported back to his childhood after taking his first bite of Remy's delectable creation. (If you haven't seen this movie, I highly recommend it.) I had a favorite apple tree where I spent many hours curled up with a book or just contemplating the view. I love the physicality of "Up, up/I climb--hand over knee." Oh, to climb a tree again!
ReplyDeleteThank you for introducing us to Syvlia's book and sharing your summer poem. I love the refrain "You'll find me in the apple tree."
ReplyDeleteI am excited to read Sylvia Liu's book. Your poem brought me back to the time I got to read in the trees by where I lived while our house was being built.
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