If it's a person, place, or thing—/Your dad, Detroit, a diamond ring,/If it's a boat or coat or clown,/It's simple, Simon, it's a noun! In this 20th anniversary edition of A Mink, a Fink, a… Read More →

Acrostic? What kind of stick is that? Actually, it's a poem! Acrostic poems are created from a word or phrase written vertically down the page. Each letter becomes part of a line in the poem, Read More →

Adverbs tell us when and how,/Like, quickly do your homework, now./They often help describe the verbs,/Like, patiently plant peas and herbs. In this 20th anniversary edition of Dearly,… Read More →

At lunch, / I ate three cans / of alphabet soup. / An hour later / I had / thesaurus / throat / ever. Would you care for a cupful of couplets? How about a helping of haiku? Brian P. Cleary… Read More →

Eek, you reek, You make a funk. Where you have been Things stink, stank, stunk. You've left a path, A swath of smell, And—yuck! You did it very well. Readers will be delighted by the… Read More →

Stop right there! If you think poems about nature are all pretty flowers and rainbow sunsets, this book is not for you. If you can’t handle giant whale farts, turn back right now. If you… Read More →

Adjectives help tell us more,/Like narrow street or favorite store./Hilly, chilly, fast, and fun,/undercooked and overdone. In this 20th anniversary edition of Hairy, Scary, Ordinary, author Read More →

Just like a substitute teaches your class,/when she's asked to fill in for your teacher,/a pronoun steps in as a sub for a noun,/ becoming the star of the feature. In this 20th anniversary… Read More →

What is a haiku? It sounds like a sneeze. And isn't a lantern a light source? Actually, they are two types of ancient Japanese poetry. Award-winning author Brian P. Cleary explains how each… Read More →

Quatrain? What kind of train is that? Actually, it's a poem! Quatrains are poems with patterns of rhyming words. Award-winning author Brian P. Cleary explains how quatrains work—and shows… Read More →

Is that a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's a poem! Concrete poems are shaped like their subjects. They can look like objects, animals, or even people. You won't find many straight lines here!… Read More →

"Hoy, jóvenes y viejitos bailan / a la luna y la estrella brillosa / celebrando su fiesta, / la pachanga deliciosa." El aclamado poeta Pat Mora se ha unido al artista Francisco X. Mora para… Read More →

Because there are synonyms, you get to choose/from a whole list of possible words you can use./ They're words that are practically, nearly the same,/like, gentle, subdued, or incredibly tame. Read More →

Come romp with me amongst the words/Come play amongst the phrases/Swing and climb from pun to rhyme/And hop through versey mazes. Swim through rivers thick with thought/Rejoice from head to… Read More →

What do you get when you combine a poem and a joke? A limerick! These five-line rhyming poems are funny, silly, and sly. Award-winning author Brian P. Cleary explains how limericks work—and… Read More →

Antonyms are opposites—/they're words like stop and go./See how different those words are?/They're just like yes and no. In this 20th anniversary edition of Stop and Go, Yes and No, author… Read More →

To root, to toot, to parachute,/ To play the flutophone or flute,/ To dare, defend, descend, disturb—/If it's an action, it's a verb! In this 20th anniversary edition of To Root, to Toot, to Read More →

When is a list also a poem? When it's a list poem! List poems can be funny or serious, rhymed or unrhymed. Award-winning author Brian P. Cleary explains how these types of poems work—and… Read More →

Prepositions do their job/in a way that just amazes—/Relating nouns and pronouns/to the other words and phrases. In this 20th anniversary edition of Under, Over, By the Clover, author Brian… Read More →