Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold

Book title _Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold

Poet/Anthologist, Illustrator __Joyce Sidman & Rick Allen

Publisher, Year _Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014

Bibliography

Sidman, J., & Allen, R. (2014). Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN: 9780547906508

Plot Summary

Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold is a collection of poems from Joyce Sidman. The poems center around one theme, wintertime in the woods. The poems are accompanying with a wintery illustration of the animals by Rick Allen.

Critical Analysis

Sidman provides a range of poetry to introduce the readers about the activities that happen in the forest throughout the winter season. Each of the poems discusses a different animal, plant, or other aspect and their perspective of the winter. Throughout the poems, we follow a red fox as we are introduced to the different aspects of the forest. An example of this is shown in the poem named Big Brown Moose. The fox is shown to be on a hill, in the distance. The subtopic of each aspect of winter takes up two pages of illustration. On the left page is where the poems begin and on the right page the readers can learn more about these subtopics.

In some poems, it is easy to identify the rhymes that are used. For example, in Big Brown Moose the stanza is broken into six lines. Based on the last words in each line, the first two lines rhyme with each other (ex. Slump and clump), then the third line and the sixth line (ex. I and sky), finally the fourth and fifth line (ex. Nuzzle and muzzle). Some of the rhymes are words that are spelled similar but Sidman had to take into consideration the pronunciation of a word. This can be seen with sky and I. The words are not spelled similarly, but the sound I make is close to the sound y makes in the word sky.

Sidman was meticulous when it came to the language used in both the poetry aspect and the information about the animal or activity. This can be seen in Snake’s Lullaby. Sidman explains the process of bromate snakes go through in the winter and then goes more into detail on the reason why on the next page. With the help of the illustration, readers can imagine the snakes slithering together to keep warm as winter nears. This is one of the many examples Sidman and Allen worked together to provide imagery for the readers and understand that these animals are feeling that they must prepare for winter.

Review Excerpts and Awards

·         2015 Claudia Lewis Poetry Award

·         ALSC Notable Children’s Book

·         ILA Teachers’ Choice Award

·         Midwest Bookseller’s Choice Award

·         School Library Journal Best Book of 2014

·         Kirkus Best Book of 2014

·         The Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book

·         Chicago Public Library Best Book of 2014

·         New York Public Library's 100 Best Books for Reading and Sharing

·         2014 Nerdy Poetry Award

“Fascinating, detailed information about the subjects accompanies each poem. The poems appear on the left, with the factual material on the right of double-page spreads, while Allen’s intricate, unusual and exquisite illustrations take center stage. They are rendered in a combination of media, including large numbers of cut, inked and hand-colored linoleum blocks, which are then digitized and layered; the result is magic.” -Kirkus Review

“Just as Sidman and Allen saw through the ominousness of night to find beauty and joy in the Newbery Honor–winning Dark Emperor, they now discover warmth, community, and wisdom in the dead of winter. Sidman’s 12 poems draw readers through the first whiff of winter that sends tundra swans migrating to warmer climates (“As we tucked beaks/ into feathers and settled for sleep,/ our wings knew”) to the humble, unlikely first observers of spring’s arrival: skunk cabbage and springtails (snow fleas). Along the way, readers are treated to fascinating details about snakes, beavers, wolves, ravens, and other animals in extensive sidebars, while Allen’s hand-colored, digitally layered linocuts bring a stately majesty to every page. Each poem brings a sense of humor, respect, or wonder to its subject, from minuscule bees “Born with eyelash legs/ and tinsel wings” to an imposing “slumberous moose.” -Publishers Weekly

Connections

For more poetry books about nature, check out these books:

·         Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night, Joyce Sidman, ISBN 978-0547152288

·         Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems, Joyce Sidman, ISBN 978-0618135479

·         National Geographic Book of Nature Poetry: More than 200 Poems With Photographs That Float, Zoom, and Bloom!, J. Patrick Lewis, ISBN 978-1426320941

·         Boom! Bellow! Bleat!: Animal Poems for Two or More Voices, Georgia Heard, ISBN 978-1620915202