Handsprings

Bibliography:
Florian, Douglas. 2006. Handsprings. Ill. by Douglas Florian. Greenwillow Books. ISBN 0-06-009280-7

Plot Summary:
This book of poems and paintings discusses the likes and dislikes of Spring. From poems about the longer days, spring showers, flowers, April Fools' Day to Spring-cleaning, insects, mud, and thunderstorms, this book talks about everything Spring holds. It is a celebration of the Spring season from start to finish.

Critical Analysis:
Each page has a new poem about Spring, 29 in all. The poems are titled in all capitals. All the poems are fairly short in length and are typed in standard poem form. However, some poems play with the word format a little more by stacking the words diagonally down the page, writing them in a half circle, or staggering the words and letters, instead of straight across the page. This makes it visually appealing and interesting to the child's eye as the read poem after poem. The vocabulary used within the poems are very simplistic and basic making it easier for children to get used to reading poems and comprehending them if they are new to poetry. The poems are sometimes goofy with phrases such as, "sometimes chilly, spring is silly daffodilly."

The water-color and colored pencil illustrations are also on every page with plenty of the white page surrounding it. Occasionally, there will be a page with only pictures and no poems. The illustrations are bursting with bright colors, mainly reds, oranges, yellows, blues, and greens. The pictures also compare to those of a child's work in that they are made of imperfect shapes, scribbles, and are extremely creative, such as a tree with the branches spelling out the word "Spring" or a boy sweeping with a giant leaf. These illustrations will hold the interest of the child because it looks like work of their peers and there are always pictures they can look at relating to each poem they read.

Review Excerpts:
Kirkus Review: "Teachers in the early elementary grades will find this volume a breath of fresh air for poetry studies in the last months of the school year".
School Library Journal: "Most libraries will want to purchase this entertaining suite."
Publisher's Weekly: "...this cheery collection brims with...reminders that winter doesn't last forever."

Connections:
*This book serve as an introduction to the Spring season and be a discussion starter for activities to do during springtime.
*This book can be used as an introduction into poetry and/or rhyming.