Meow Ruff: A Story in Concrete Poetry

Sidman, Joyce. 2006. Meow Ruff: A Story in Concrete Poetry.  Ill. by Michelle Berg.  Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Co.  ISBN 9780618448944

(Image obtained from amazon.com)

Summary

Meow Ruff:  A Story in Concrete Poetry tells the story of an adventurous friendship between a dog and an abandoned cat.  Meow Ruff:  A Story in Concrete Poetry is intended for children in grades K-3. 

Quality and Appeal

Meow Ruff:  A Story in Concrete Poetry (as the title conveys) is entirely written in through concrete poetic form.  Concrete poetry, also known as a shape poetry, refers to poems which are arranged in a manner that visually depicts shapes often related in subject matter to the poems. 

In all honesty, I hated this book.  The content was difficult to follow as the concrete poems do not follow normal reading patterns (for example, left to right, top to bottom).  Often times, I would read a stanza after another as I tried to navigate the page but there was no connection and this only created a disjointed reading experience where I eventually almost felt nauseous.  I had to read and reread several times before I could even grasp the content in one poem, and then I would have to begin my journey over to understand the entire page.  Consider this:  I have been reading for 20+ years, how will beginning readers fare? 

Perhaps, if each element on the page was singled out, the imagery and detail is actually quite interesting.  However, with so much going on, the confusion outweighs and interest in delving deeper.  The saddest element is the illustration.  While beautiful and cute, the illustrations only complicate the process as words are camouflaged due to poor contrast. 

Awards and/or Mentions

Won Minnesota Book Award in 2007

Spotlight Poem

(Poem written in the shape of a cloud)                

Plump

Bright Dome

Of Sugar White

Sky-Muffin

This poem could be used to introduce adjectives for younger readers.  Children can be invited to construct poems about everyday items with single words. 

Books like Meow Ruff:  A Story in Concrete Poetry

A Poem as Big as New York City: Little Kids Write About the Big Apple by Masha D-yans

Rainbow Soup: Adventures in Poetry by Brian P. Cleary

A Poke in the I: A Collection of Concrete Poems by Paul B. Janeczko