GOOD TIMES,

GOOD BOOKS!

selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins

pictures by Harvey Stevenson

Noted poet, writer and anthologist Lee Bennett Hopkins selected the poems for this delightful little book. This is a wonderful collection of poetry by several authors, some more well-known than others. The fourteen poems form a cohesive book that deals with . . . books! Each of the selections are short enough to be read quickly - yet with enough substance to savor again and again. The double-page layouts of bright pastel watercolor illustrations by Harvey Stevenson contribute to the casual, fun tone of the book but don't overwhelm the poems themselves.

Most of the poems have some sort of rhyme scheme but a few do not, utilizing a free-verse format. The use of figurative language is prevalent throughout the book. In fact, several of the poems use personification to engage the reader's imagination such as Isabel Joshlin Glaser's What If or as Prince Redcloud writes in And Then:

"I was reading

a poem

about snow

when

the sun

came out

and

melted it."

The intended audience is elementary-age children, ages 5-8 years. They will certainly enjoy the concrete meanings but older readers will bring a different set of experiences to the poems and enjoy them just as much. Good Books, Good Times! is very reader-friendly making it an excellent choice for book lovers as well as reluctant readers. I rather enjoyed all of the selections and the places in my mind where they took me.

Poets in this anthology include: William Cole, Aileen Fisher, Isabel Joshlin Glaser, William J. Harris, Lee Bennett Hopkins, Leland B. Jacobs, X.J. Kennedy, Karla Kuskin, Myra Cohn Livingston, Arnold Lobel, David McCord, Beverly McLoughland, Jack Prelutsky and Prince Redcloud.

Hopkins, Lee Bennett. 1990. GOOD BOOKS, GOOD TIMES!. Ill. Harvey Stevenson. New York: HarperCollins.