Friday, May 3, 2024

Poems About Home

Hello and Happy Poetry Friday! Be sure to visit boundless Buffy Silverman for Roundup.

I've spent the week blessedly AT HOME gardening, reading, writing, cleaning...and lunching! Seems like every day I've had a lunch date. 'Tis the season!

If you want a peek inside my reading-as-a-writer life, be sure to check out my post over at Smack Dab in the Middle, where I share excerpts from a few MG books in my HUGE computer folder titled "Books I've Read." (Yes, recording beautiful words written by others is an important part of my life and writing practice!) Prepare to be inspired.

Also, this just in: check out the cover reveal of mine and Charles' debut anthology THE MISTAKES THAT MADE US (coming Oct. 1 from Carolrhoda/Lerner) over at Poetry for Children. So many thanks to Sylvia Vardell!

One of the books I'm excited about is HOME by Isabelle Simler, translated from French to English by Vineet Lal, brought to us by the good folks at Eerdman's. It contains 27 poems all about homes made by birds, ant, spider, sea snail...and each one has a home/human-made-building word in the title, like the comet moth's "Silky Apartment" or the cathedral termite's "Clay Skyscraper"  or elf owl's "Cactus Cabin." 


Isabelle Simler
The palette is kind of dark and enchanting, and each spread showcases realistic renderings of both animal and home. Back matter includes "More About These Amazing Animals" a Glossary, and a list of Recommended Resources. End papers charmingly show man-made home structures. Beautiful choice for animal/nature lovers and engineer/builders alike! Thank you to the publisher for granting permission for me to share two poems from the collection.


MOSSY MINIATURE HOME

of the hummingbird

Family Trochiladae

My teeny-tiny

featherweight house

has grown under a leaf.

Over several weeks,

I've patiently gathered

numerous bits

of moss and lichen

and, little by little,

shaped my jewel case home.

In this doll's teacup of a nest

lin two hummingbird eggs,

each the size of a pea.


- Isabelle Simler

BLUE PAVILION

of the satin bowerbird

Ptilonorhynchus violaceus

I have a real flair for home decoration.

Azure bottle caps and petals catch my indigo eye

and excite the designer in me.

I've built an arched avenue from sticks and twigs.

I've painted the walls with berry juice

and stuck some flowers here and there.

My collection os objects is a garden of love.

At the blue hour, I shall make my entrance

to steal the heart of my beloved.

- Isabelle Simler


And now for today's ArtSpeak: FOLK ART. Since we're on the topic of "home," I've selected a piece by Cheryl Bartley that features a lake house. Thanks so much for reading!


Lake Cottage

This little house our ours
sits beside a lake full of stars.

Our garden grows rainbows,
thanks to sunsplash and rainglow.

How lucky we are to live
in a place with so much to give!

This little house of ours;
you and me, kissing the stars.

- Irene Latham

16 comments:

  1. Peace be upon you♡
    Thank you for sharing

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  2. Thanks for sharing those poems from Isabelle's book -- just lovely and such gorgeous art (esp. love Blue Pavilion). Your lake cottage poem is charming (I could see myself living there).

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  3. Thank you for sharing Isabelle’s poetry. I love how lyrically the translated version flows – “jewel case home/in this doll’s teacup of a nest.” So beautiful! And your Lake Cottage poem perfectly pairs with the idyllic folk art – I want to move right in!

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  4. The artwork in HOME is exquisite. I just gave my copy to my local library, and now I feel like I need to check it out! Sunsplash and rainglow are my two favorite words of the day.

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  5. The bowerbird art & poem is striking - so. pleased to learn of a new-to-me poet favoring nature - and a new bird. And, I downloaded a free art page from your link path to Folk Artist Cheryl Bartley. Such a fascinating person. Your lake home poem from her art is something to love, Irene. Glad for your home week.

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  6. I have wanted to get HOME; now i want it more! Your poem strikes a resonant chord - a lake house "our ours" - in two teeny words it sings a song of love.

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  7. "beside a lake full of stars..." how wonderful!
    The French teacher at my school is always looking for middle grade books in French. I need to see if I can get a copy in it's original language for him. Thank you so much for this post!

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  8. Thank you for sharing Home. It is one I will need to read. And your cottage by the lake full of stars is so delightful!

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  9. I'll look for Home, Irene, the examples you gave are exquisite! And, I love reading all about your and Charles' new anthology, one for every age, right? And your "Lake Cottage", wonderful, a place we all could call "home" - love "Our garden grows rainbows,/thanks to sunsplash and rainglow." Have a lovely weekend!

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  10. Irene, as always, there is so much to enjoy here. Congrats on your new anthology coming out. The cover looks very inviting.

    That poem of the "jewel case home" of the hummingbird is delightful. I think Home looks like a wonderful collection.

    And in your lovely and complete lake front home poem, I especially enjoyed these magical phrases:
    "sunsplash and rainglow"
    and
    "kissing the stars"

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  11. HOME - the best four letter word there is. Thanks for sharing Isabelle Simler's work and your Lake Cottage poem. :)

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  12. Wonderful! I love the "sunsplash and rainglow," too. The Homes book sounds like one for our library; I'll ask them to buy it!

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  13. Beautiful poetry and art in the book Home. I think part of a poet's job is to look closely at things. You are a master at smashing words together. Love sunsplash and rainglow.

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  14. Thank you for sharing poems about home. I will have to check out Home by Simler. I really enjoyed Blue Pavilion. The word selection was spot on, as it seemed as if some expensive decorator was describing the space.

    I'm ready to head to the Lake Cottage to stay by the lake of stars. I think all I would need is a good book to enjoy my time there.

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  15. Oh sunsplash and rainglow! Love these words! I just bought HOME a few weeks ago, and I haven't had a chance to dive in deep yet (end of school shenanigans). The pictures are just so gorgeous. I can't wait to read the poems.

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  16. Your collection of poems about home is truly heartwarming, Irene. Home is such a deeply personal and universal theme, and your words beautifully capture its essence in all its forms. It's remarkable how poetry can evoke such strong emotions and memories. chuy's coupon

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Your thoughts?