Singer,
Marilyn. 2013. Follow Follow: A Book of Reverso Poems. Ill.
by Josee Masse. New York: Penguin
Group.
ISBN 9780803737693
(Image
obtained from amazon.com)
Summary
Follow Follow: A Book of Reverso Poems is a poetry picture book on popular fairy
tales (such as the Turtle and the Hare, Thumbelina, and the Three Little Pigs)
and serves as a companion to its predecessor, Mirror Mirror, also by Marilyn Singer. Follow
Follow: A Book of Reverso Poems is intended for children in grades
1-5.
Quality and Appeal
Reverso poetry is a term coined by author, Marilyn Singer, to describe
the unique and clever way in which she writes a poem that reads one way when
being read top down and then switches meaning when read from bottom to top with
only changes in punctuation and capitalization.
Of the fourteen poems in this book, the reverse version is almost always
completely different than the meaning in the first poem (see below Spotlight
Poem).
While this is a form I was unfamiliar with before I picked up Follow Follow: A Book of Reverso Poems,
it was an enjoyable read. Singer manages
to create word 'magic'... a characteristic only found in authors who really
understand their craft. Both poems are
shown on the page so that young readers do not have to struggle with physically
reading in an unconventional manner. Masse
couples this interesting poetic form with bold illustrations also parallel in
nature which only strengthen the vast difference between each poem’s reversed partners.
Although the target audience for this book is children in grades K-3,
older children may get a kick out of the wordplay.
Spotlight Poem
Birthday
Suit
Behold his glorious majesty:
me.
Who dares say he drained the treasury
on
nothing?
Ha!
This emperor has
sublime taste in finery!
Only a fool could fail to see.
Only a fool could fail to see.
Sublime taste in finery?
This emperor has –
ha! –
nothing
on!
Who dares say he drained the treasury?
Me.
Behold his glorious majesty!
This poem could be
used to introduce the basics of wordplay when writing. Children should be invited to write their own
reverse poems which will instill an understanding of semantics and how words
work together.
Books like
Mirror Mirror: A
Book of Reversible Verse by Marilyn Singer
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