Bibliography:
Schertle, Alice. (2009). Button Up! Ill. by Petra Mathers. New York, NY: Harcourt Children's Books. ISBN 9780152050504.
Summary:
Button Up! is a children's poetry book. The collection is poems by Alice Schertle. The poems are about different articles of clothing. Poems are written from the point of view of the article of clothing. Overall, Button Up! is very fun book of poems for children with many opportunities to connect to other subjects besides poetry!
Critical Analysis:
The poems in Button Up! rhyme and have nice rhythm. The rhyming in most of the poems does not feel forced in any way and flows naturally. Some words are repeated (See Emily's Undies for an example of repetitive words - seen). The rhythm of each poem seemed to flow naturally when read aloud. A few times while I read the poems allowed I added in a word without much thought, then went back to reread and find out why I said the word. In many cases, I was just in a "groove" of rhythm, but the poem was written differently. One poem that stuck out as different from the others was Clyde's Costume. The rhythm of this poem wasn't intuitive like many of the other poems.
All poems portray a natural, bouncy emotion. The poems are fun and sometimes a little silly. For example, Rick's Wool Sweater was a funny poem talking about the itchy sweater that Rick wore. The sweater talks about how sometimes it is nice to prickle poor Rick. This silly, bouncy fun is sure to be enjoyed by children and adults alike. Most of the poems display a traditional format. A few poems show an interesting orientation, with stanzas in different places (all in an intuitive flow). Others show bold words. See Wanda's Swimsuit or Violet's Hiking Hat for examples of each.
The illustrations are lovely watercolor. Each illustration does a fine job of bringing each poem to life. One specific poem where I felt the illustrations were imperative to the poem was Joshua's Jammies. The poem describes how Joshua's jammies are only good for Joshua, not for any of his animal friends. The illustration shows alligator (or crocodile, perhaps?) Joshua being carried to bed by his mother with all of his friends in the floor. The friends mentioned in the poem (penguins, whales, tigers, etc.) are Joshua's stuffed animal toys. In many cases, Mathers' illustrations really bring the poems to life.
Awards:
Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award 2010
Review excerpt from School Library Journal: "Alice Schertle's Button Up: Wrinkled Rhymes is "light fare" but exquisitely so. Schertle writes true and perfect "verse"-it rhymes, it has internally logical rhythm, it is funny, good to read aloud, and memorable."
Connections:
Also by Alice Schertle -- Pio Peep! Traditional Spanish Nursery Rhymes, Little Blue Truck, Very Hairy Bear.
Science Connection -- Introduce a weather unit with several poems
Physical Education Connection -- Introduce a unit on safety (Bob's Bicycle Helmet) or other units on sports (Wanda's Swimsuit, Jack's Soccer Jersey)
Language Arts connection -- Literary elements: onomatopoeia
Writing connection -- Use to enhance word-to-visual images and ideas
Music Connection: Use to teach about rhyme and rhythm
Use for vocabulary and fluency
Use the poems to teach about syllables in words
Use the book to introduce clothing articles to young children
Sources:
Goodreads. "Books by Alice Schertle." Goodreads. Accessed February 26, 2012. http://www.goodreads.com/author/list/191218.Alice_Schertle.
School Library Journal. "Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog." Posted by Nina Lindsey on October 22, 2009. http://blog.schoollibraryjournal.com/heavymedal/2009/10/22/poetry-2/.
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