Genre 3-LS 5603 Kristine O'Connell George

Genre 3-Book Review-Kristine O’ Connell George
1.Bibliography: George, Kristine O'Connell. Toasting Marshmallows:Camping Poems. New York: Clarion Books, 2001. ISBN 061804597X
2. Plot Summary: Kristine O’Connell George has created a group of poems that transport the reader to special times when fond memories are made. Each poem is insight to moments when the outside world seems to disappear, and the smells, tastes of spending time outdoors make life more enjoyable.
3. Critical Analysis: Each of the poems help to relive camping experiences. The words chosen by the poet are arranged in such a way, the reader can almost taste the marshmallows as they are roasting and turning in the fire as in the poem titled “Toasting Marshmallows”. The use of imagery is key throughout the entire book. In the poem titled “ Rain Dance”, the images of rain falling as a result of the birds moving as if in a dancing motion makes one almost feel the raindrops coming down on their head. The poem “Two Voices in a Tent at Night” can make someone feel as if they were inside the tent hearing outside noises and not wanting to make a move to see what it is. Each poem presents a mental picture in which each of the senses are heightened and the use of unexpected visual images help to make the poem more memorable. The visual image of the beams of light in the poem “Flashlight” make the reader almost squint at the light when reading this poem.
4. Awards Won and Review Excerpts:
Texas Bluebonnet Award Nominee-2003-2004
Horn Book Guide- The pleasure and surprise of going camping are conveyed in eighteen brief poems. . . .Richly colored paintings enhance the verses.
Booklist, ALA, Starred Review -"fine collection brings the outdoors up close...direct, satisfying poems that will engage kids at school, across the curriculum, or at home."
School Library Journal Starred -The poems are varied and inventive, replete with marvelous images and universal truths. . . .A terrific idyll for summertime sharing, even for confirmed couch potatoes.
5.Connections:
Other books by Kristine O’Connell George:
-George, Kristine O’Connell. The Great Frog Race and Other Poems. ISBN-10: 0618604782
-George, Kristine O’Connell. Old Elm Speaks: Tree Poems. ISBN-10: 0618752420
-George, Kristine O’Connell. Little Dog Poems. ISBN-10: 0395822661
Other books about camping and the experience of being outdoors:
-Ruurs, Margriet. When We Go Camping. ISBN-10: 0887766854
-James, Helen Foster. S Is For S’mores: A Camping Alphabet(Alphabet Books). ISBN-10: 1585363022