Mary Had a Little Worm: Book Suggestions for Math, History, Geography, and Our Planet

Clever verses in rhyme turn mathematical equations, history, science and geography into language that is playful, sometimes wacky, and never dull.

Math

One Leaf Rides the Wind
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
Author: Celeste Davidson Mannis Illustrator: Susan Kathleen Hartung
Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc., $15.99 (Hardcover)

On its simplest level, this is a counting book, the numbers one to ten. On a second level, it conveys both in pictures and in non-intrusive footnotes at the bottom of each text page something of the spirit and contents of a Japanese garden. And on a third tier, the reader and listener become aware of the rhythm and form of the text: the three-line free-verse narrative on each and every page is an example of haiku, a form of poetry that originated in Japan hundreds of years ago.

Mathematickles!
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
Author: Betsy Franco Illustrator: Steven Salerno
Margaret K. McElderry Books

Beginning with autumn, Franco presents each of the seasons as a series of math puzzles progressing from simple addition and subtraction (“holes + nuts – nuts = squirrel hide & seek”) to easy equations (“1/2 w = v = flying geese”) in this refreshingly playful approach to the language of numbers.

Math Fables
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
Author: Greg Tang Illustrator: Heather Cahoon
Scholastic, $16.95 (Hardcover)

This collection—Tang’s sixth in a series of math-oriented titles—develops the concept of grouping using the numbers from 1 to 10. A note at the end encourages math-related activities based on the book.

Marvelous Math
Ages: 5 & Up
Author: Lee Bennett Hopkins Illustrator: Karen Barbour
Simon & Schuster, $17.00 (Hardcover)

Math is not a mystery, it is part of our everyday lives as this inviting collection of sixteen poems makes clear. Karen Barbour’s lush illustrations—richly colored and highly detailed—make this a visual treat as well.

History

The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
Author: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Illustrator: Christopher Bing
Hardprint Books, $17.95 (Hardcover)

From marblized endpapers to documents that actually unfold, young readers will feel like they’re holding history in their hands as they read Longfellow’s classic words and follow Paul Revere on his history-making ride.

George Washington's Cows
Ages: 5 - 7 yrs.
Author: David Small
Farrar, Straus & Giroux, $6.95 (Paperback)

Coddled cows upstairs, pigs running the household, and lecturing sheep-- is it any wonder that George Washington fled home to brave the frosty Delaware? Told in rollicking verse and virtuoso watercolors, Small's book is a model of economy of line and narrative moving so fast you don't have time to wonder or stop chuckling.

The Ancestors are Singing
Ages: 8 & Up
Author: Tony Johnston
Farrar, Straus & Giroux, $16.00 (Hardcover)

Although Mexico and the United States share an extensive boundary, many Americans know little about the culture of our south-of-the-border neighbors. But young readers of Tony Johnston's newest poetry collection will have an eye-opening introduction to a large and diverse country. In 29 free verse poems, Johnston touches on subjects both ancient and modern, while Karen Barbour's illustrations use a primitive style that effectively complements the text, and are surprisingly vibrant in black and white.

Celebrate America in Poetry and Art
Ages: 9 - 12 yrs.
Editor: Nora Panzer
Hyperion, $12.99 (Paperback)

Beginning with a verse from “America the Beautiful,” this unique volume pairs art (paintings, sculpture, drawings, and photographs) from the National Museum of American Art with poems that reflect our country’s rich history and diverse heritage.

Singing America
Ages: 9 - 12 yrs.
Editor: Neil Philip Illustrator: Michael McCurdy
Viking

The poems in this substantial collection have been carefully selected to reflect the American experience: from Native American chants to the rhythms of San Francisco’s beat poets. Striking black and white illustrations decorate many of the pages giving the whole an antique feel.

Science & Nature

Scien-Trickery
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
Author: J. Patrick Lewis Illustrator: Frank Remkiewicz
Silver Whistle, $16.00 (Hardcover)

Eighteen rib-tickling riddle-poems elucidate such mysteries as oxygen and gravity, sound and electricity. A mathematically inclined companion volume, Arithme-Tickles, bills itself as “An Even Number of Odd Riddle-Rhymes.”

mammalabilia
Ages: 6 & Up
By: Douglas Florian
Publisher: Harcourt, Inc., $16.00 (Hardcover)

For a child with a sophisticated vocabulary and a love of words, mammalabilia provides 21 clever rhymed verses about a variety of animals, some familiar and others exotic. Florian's full-page paintings, arresting and impressionistic, often have the drawback of not giving a clear picture of what the animal really looks like. Thus, his aardvark might well be a donkey, his fox a pussycat. But his gorilla couldn't be better, and the verse that accompanies its portrait - "A gentle giant/ Blessed with grace.../ It's stilla/ Gorilla - / Don't get in its face" - is among Florian's best. For those who loved his insectlopedia, jaunty verses about bugs, this sequel will be greeted with joy.

Science Verse
Ages: 8 & Up
Author: Jon Scieszka Illustrator: Lane Smith
Viking, $16.99 (Hardcover)

Loosely based on a variety of famous poems (“Listen, my children, and you shall hear/Of how loud noises go in your ear.”) these 21 wacky poems—accompanied by Lane Smith’s equally goofy illustrations—cover everything from the “Water Cycle” (“It’s raining, it’s pouring/For H20, it’s boring”) to anatomy (“I think that I ain’t never seen/A poem ugly as a spleen”) to parasites (“Mary had a little worm./She thought it was a chigger./But everything that Mary ate/Only made it bigger.”) The main thing you’ll learn about science is that it can be a lot of fun.

Geography

Is It Far to Zanzibar?
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
Author: Nikki Grimes Illustrator: Betsy Lewin
Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books, $15.95 (Hardcover)

In lively, rhythmic, humorous poems, the author captures the ambience of East Africa and its flora and fauna. Each poem seems to lead off in one direction until the reader arrives at the last line, which gives it a witty twist. Sprinkled with Swahili words for flavor, and depicting characters who seem (and probably are) real, this book is a thorough delight. The glossary and map at the end are simple yet helpful.

Come to the Great World
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
Author: Wendy Cooling Illustrator: Sheila Moxley
Holiday House, $16.95 (Hardcover)

Grab an atlas and pinpoint where each of these 31 poems comes from: China, Nicaragua, Hungry, New Zealand, Guyana and many more points around the globe.

Sleep Rhymes Around the World
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
Author: Jane Yolen Illustrator: 17 International Artist
Boyds Mill Press, $9.95 (Paperback)

Travel to the four corners of the earth as children settle down to sleep in this collection of 21 poems from 17 different cultures, each presented in its original (or transliterated) language as well as in English. Illustrated by artists from each country, this collection is rich in cultural detail as well as stylistically diverse.

Our Planet

Swing Around the Sun
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
Author: Barbara Juster Esbensen
Illustrators: Cheng-Khee Chee, Janice Lee Porter, Mary GrandPre, and Stephen Gammell
Carolrhoda Books, $16.95 (Hardcover)

Esbensens’ poems form a series of word-scapes, distilling the essence of each of the four seasons. Four renowned illustrators—one for each season—capture the poems in paintings.

Autumnblings
Ages: 4 - 8 yrs.
By: Douglas Florian
Greenwillow, $15.99 (Hardcover)

Each season is a unique experience in Douglas Florian’s light-hearted collections which also include Summersaults and Winter Eyes. The author’s color-drenched paintings enhance every page.

The Sun in Me: Poems About the Planet
Ages: 9 - 12 yrs.
Author: Judith Nicholls Illustrator: Beth Krommes
Barefoot Books, $16.99 (Hardcover)

Twenty-two different poets celebrate our earth and its infinite variety. From John Updike’s “Winter Ocean” (“Many-maned scud-thumper”) to Sappho’s “Evening Star” (…You bring back/All that the bright dawn scattered”) children will learn to look deeply and listen carefully to the world around them. Each word-picture is surrounded by a gentle scratchboard-and-watercolor illustration that invites contemplation.

About the Author
Kristi Jemtegaard is the Youth Services Supervisor/Children's Specialist for the Arlington Public Library system in Virginia. She also serves as adjunct faculty in the Education Department of the University of Virginia and has taught at Catholic University in Washington D.C.

Explore Your World With Poetry
Parents' Choice salutes National Poetry Month with suggestions guaranteed to tickle and teach. Even the youngest riddlers will be encouraged to explore poetry: from Bali to Zanzibar, from Frankenstein to the Elympics. This varied collection offers poetic choices for even the toughest to please.

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Mary Had a Little Worm: Book Suggestions for Math, History, Geography, and Our Planet