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Module 3 Poetry - ZOOBILATIONS! ANIMAL POEMS AND PAINTINGS - Written by Douglas Florian

 

Module 3 – Book Review 2

Review of Douglas Florian’s ZOOBILATIONS! ANIMAL POEMS AND PAINTINGS 

*This review was written for a course through Sam Houston State University.


1. BIBLIOGRAPHY 

Florian, Douglas. (2022). ZOOBILATIONS! ANIMAL POEMS AND PAINTINGS. Beach Lane Books. ISBN: 9781534465909


 2. SUMMARY 

"Zoobilations!" by Douglas Florian is a collection of animal-themed poetry that details and celebrates the world of wildlife. There are individual short poems about animals, bugs, and birds. Clever wordplay combined with the illustrations brings the animals to life. The poems have rhythm and rhyme, and the author uses anthropomorphism to bring some familiar favorite animals and others that are less known into the world of poetry. From the safe place of a magician's hat for a rabbit to a comparison of a flying fox (a bat) to a fox who flies in a jet, the author's imagination takes poetry about animals to a fun place while still being educational.

 
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS  

"Zoobilations!" works with themes of nature and wildlife. Each poem is humorous, short, and dedicated to different individual animals and their uniqueness and behavior. The structure of the short poems uses rhyme and rhythm encouraging interaction in reading as well as listening. Poetry is meant to be read aloud, and the experience varies between being the reader which encourages storytelling and then listening to stimulate imagination. The style and use of language and imagery by Florian help with the description of the animals and their environments so that the animals seem to come alive from the page. The illustrations work well with poems as the poetry lands on one side of the page with the illustrations opposite. The childlike drawings/paintings mimic crayon or chalk-like strokes and add to the reading experience by providing visual representations of the animals that engage the reader and draw them in. The collection of poems gives a connection to the world of wildlife and provides an opportunity for children to explore more poetry.


Reading this poetry to my two young boys was a humorous and engaging experience. Both of the boys loved the book, which was in true little boy style as it talked about animals. The hilarity of the poems combined with the pictures entertained the boys and triggered conversations, as well as songs they decided to make up about other animals. It was a great experience for everyone.


4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S) 

Booklist (March 1, 2022 (Vol. 118, No. 13)) 

In verses running from just a couplet to a dozen or so lines each, Florian intersperses snippets of natural history with imaginative flights of fancy, putting centipedes and millipedes on bicycles to admire how fast they “centi-pedal,” or setting an unhappy circus elephant to dreams of flying in “ele-fantasies.” It's beastly fun, as usual, whether read silently or bellowed aloud.

 

Horn Book Magazine (March/April, 2022) 

Florian returns to the zoo (zoo's who, rev. 5/05) with twenty new pithy and jubilant poems about animals. The wide range of creatures -- from centipedes and seagulls to mandrills and flying foxes -- offers young readers familiar specimens as well as some less well-known ones. Florian's experimentation with word meanings and usage models how to have fun with writing, imagery, and verse.


5. CONNECTIONS  

  • Related Books - Other books for children to see the power of books, reading, and storytelling 

  • Florian, Douglas. BEAST FEAST. ISBN 9780152017378 

  • Alexander, Kwame. ANIMAL ARK: CELEBRATING OUR WILD WORLD IN POETRY AND PICTURES. ISBN 9781426327674 

  • Enrichment Activities -    

  • Illustration Workshop – Have children draw their own illustrations to go with animal poems they write to foster creativity 

  • Animal Fact Research – Ask each child to research an animal and focus on unique characteristics or behaviors 

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