Books with author Avis Harley

Poetry has been and always will be part of us. Events in everyday life have been recited, chanted, and sung since the beginnings of language. In ballad or rap, sonnet or blues, poetry is the imaginative expression that illuminates something within us. But many children, and adults, shy away from poetry, thinking it's too complicated, remote, obscure--the baffling cousin to prose. Fly with Poetry, a witty, insightful collection of original poems, introduces a rich variety of poetic forms and techniques--some handed down through the centuries, others comparatively new--and all presented in a clear, reader-friendly format. Through poetry with its myriad of forms there is no limit to the imagination. This fresh collection will inspire beginning poets of all ages to explore and discover the delight and excitement of words and language structure, and perhaps even create new forms of their own.

A masterful collection by the author of Fly With Poetry and Sea Stars. Why are butterflies so universally loved? Is it the dazzling colors in exquisite winged art? Is it our reaction to amazing feats of flight? Is it the miracle of change that fascinates us—that wonderful metamorphosis from tiny egg to brilliant insect? Avis Harley explores these questions and the many others that have captivated humans throughout history. Eighteen structured poems—haikus, tanka, sonnets, villanelles, and other forms—examine how monarch butterflies taste with their feet, migrate 2500 miles every year, and cover entire forest groves when they rest. A Small Matters section at the back explains the fact and science in the poems refer.

Poet Avis Harley continues her winning combination of poetic forms and bright illustrations in a handsome new collection. For anyone who delights in playing with words, Leap Into Poetry celebrates the world of tiny creatures in this clever array of original poetry. Each letter of the alphabet introduces an insect or a spider along with its corresponding poetry form--from ants to zebra butterflies, from alliteration to zéjel. Fledgling poets of all ages will be inspired to try their wings and discover new pleasures in language structure. Brief, intriguing facts about each creature are listed in the back.