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retrieved from https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18636916-winter-bees-other-poems-of-the-cold?ac=1&from_search=true
Sidman, Joyce. 2014. Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold.
Ill. Rick Allen. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 9780547906508
PLOT SUMMARY
In this collection, twelve poems explore the unique animals and plant life that thrives during the harsh winter season. Beautiful and intricate, two-page, richly colored illustrations draw the reader into this a variety of landscape scenes and reveal the flurry of activity that is often hidden from view. Accompanying each poem and picture are interesting science facts that aid in the readers understanding of the unique adaptations that the animal and plant life possess to survive this severe climate.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Winter Bees &
Other Poems of the Cold is an individual poet compilation featuring the
works of award-winning poet Joyce Sidman.
This thematic collection features twelve poems that focus specifically on
winter animals and the unique habitats they occupy during the wintertime
season. There is a pleasing variety of
poetry styles employed for added interest.
There are a handful of poems which employ simple rhyming
patterns. For example, Snake’s Lullaby (p. 8) follows an AA,
BB, CC, etc. form. Likewise, What Do the Trees Know? (p. 22-23) uses an
AAAA AAAA pattern with the alliteration of the long “o” sound, e.g., know,
blow, slow, go. Often, the poems follow
a simple rhyming pattern, but then delight the reader with a fun twist at the
end. Chickadee’s
Song (p. 24-25) utilizes this twist with an AABB, CCDD, EEFF, CCCC rhyming pattern.
Big Brown Moose (p.
12-13) features a baby moose and follows a playful AABCCB DDEFFE AAGHHG FFIJJI
AABCCB rhyming scheme. There is a
repeated rhyming pattern, “I’m a big brown moose, I’m a rascally moose” (lines
1-2). This pattern is utilized in
stanzas 1, 3, and 5, with the adjective for the moose in the second line changing
slightly with each new stanza, e.g., “I’m a ravenous moose” (line 14) and “I’m
a slumberous moose” (line 26).
Several examples of poems composed in free verse
form are included in this collection. For example, Dream of the Tundra Swan (p. 6), Snowflake Wakes (p. 10), and Winter
Bees (p. 14) are free verse poems that feature animals and things that
float in the air. Other examples of free
verse poems in this collection include Brother
Raven, Sister Wolf (p. 18-19), Vole
in Winter (p. 20), and The Whole
World is Melting (p. 26-27).
Triolet for Skunk
Cabbage (p. 28) is a triolet poem. This unique
poetic form utilizes only eight lines.
The rhyming scheme of ABCABAB includes the first two lines repeated as
the last two lines, e.g., “Skunk cabbage peeks up through the snow: the first
flower in the wood” (line 1-2).
Under Ice (p.
16-17) is a pantoum. A pantoum poem follows
a specific form with the second and fourth
lines of a stanza are then repeated as the first and third lines of the
following stanza. For example:
“made of ripped chips
and thrashing twigs” (line 2)
“Made of ripped chips
and thrashing twigs” (line 5),
and
“far beneath the winter sunshine” (line 4)
“beneath the winter sunshine,” (line 7).
Finally, the last
stanza repeats the order of the first and third lines of the poem. This results in the last line of the poem
being the same as the first line, e.g., “In the fat white wigwam” (line 1) and “of
the fat white wigwam” (line 20).
A fitting companion to Sidman’s poetry in this collection,
once again, are the vivid images created by illustrator Rick Allen. Allen created the illustrations for Sidman’s
2011 Newbery Honor Book, Dark Emperor and
Other Poems of the Night (2010). Allen’s
signature style is easily recognizable in both collections since all the images
were created using linoleum blocks and hand painted with gouache.
The majority of the vibrant illustrations span two pages
throughout this latest collection. The pictures allow
the readers to take a peek into the hidden habitats and locations often only
accessible by the animals themselves. For
example, the rich colors used in illustration for Winter Bees (p. 14-15) show a cut-out image of a snow-covered tree
stump that protects the bustling beehive that inhabits it. Similarly, the dark, saturated colors of Under Ice (p. 16-17) takes readers under
the ice-covered river where beavers gather sticks as they swim and then up into
the “dim oval room” (line 13) of the beaver’s dam.
There two notable exceptions are the image of the baby
moose on the title page, and the illustrations that accompany the poem, What Do the Trees Know? (p. 22-23). There are two separate images paired with What Do the Trees Know? (p. 22-23). The illustration on p. 22 features the point-of-view,
perhaps, of the animals who look up at the sky through the trees. In contrast, the illustration on p. 23
features the bird's eye or snowflake point-of-view while flying through the air
and looking down at the sleeping fox curled up on the snow-covered ground.
Readers will enjoy searching the cleverly organized
illustrations for the curious fox who always seems to be present. The fox often makes unexpected appearances through
playful shifts of point-of-view. For
example, the readers eye is naturally drawn to the flurry and writhing activity
of the snake’s undergrown nest in the illustration for Snake’s Lullaby (p. 8-9).
However, following the snakes out of their hole and looking around the
landscape above ground reveals the observant fox is watching nearby. Similarly, the illustration for Triolet for Skunk Cabbage (p. 28-29) will
delight readers when they discover the full reflected image of the fox drinking
water nearby, with only the legs and muzzle of the fox captured in the picture.
On the cover of the book, an illustration features a winter
fox captured in a mid-air jump just before it dives into the snow hunting its
prey. This illustration is carried over
to the back of the book where another fox stands off in the distance watching as the
first fox stalks its prey. Inside, the end pages
are a rich, deep grape color.
The poems
in this book are featured with a black, easy-to-read, mid-size font. Similarly, the accompanying science facts for
each animal are shown using an easy-to-read, smaller font. This stylistic choice of fonts ensures that the
reader’s eyes are naturally drawn to the larger font used for the poems.
Included in this book is a table of contents that explains the poems
are organized and located on the even page numbers. Likewise, the odd numbered-pages provide a wealth of
information and science facts regarding each animal and their unique winter
habitat. Important vocabulary words are easily
identifiable since they are shown in a bold font and are later defined in a
glossary.
The last page of the book offers readers a helpful glossary
of terms. The glossary includes
definitions of words that are specific to the animals found in their habitats
that are featured in the verses, e.g., bromate, hibernaculum, and vole. Similarly, definitions are provided for words
that are specific to the plant life featured in the poems, e.g., furcula,
hardening, and subnivean. Additionally,
the glossary contains literary terms that introduce readers to unusual vocabulary terms
specific to the poetry genre, e.g., pantoum and triolet.
This book offers an engaging variety of poetry and rhyming patterns that will appeal to a wide range
of readers, young and old alike. The
gorgeous illustrations reflect the beauty of the unique animals and plants featured in the poems. Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold offers readers a
fantastic resource that highlights the wonders of the winter habitat.
REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
From School Library
Journal: “Winter Bees distinguishes itself with a focus on the science of
animal survival, coupled with superlative illustrations. Readers young and old
will enjoy this winter journey and marvel at the wonders of nature.”
From Horn Book: “You
can almost breathe this book; you can feel the frozen air in your lungs.
There’s a lot of accomplishment on evidence in this book, but the palpable air
in this book may be its most remarkable quality.”
From Kirkus Reviews:
“Fascinating, detailed information about the subjects accompanies each poem.
The poems appear on the left, with the factual material on the right of
double-page spreads, while Allen’s intricate, unusual and exquisite
illustrations take center stage.”
CONNECTIONS
Collect other Joyce Sidman books to read such as:
- Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night. ISBN 9780547152288
- Butterfly Eyes and Other Secrets of the Meadow. ISBN 9780618563135
- Swirl by Swirl: Spirals in Nature. ISBN 9780547315836
- Frost, Robert. Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening. ISBN 9780525467342
- Rogasky, Barbara. Winter Poems. ISBN 9780590428736
- Yolen, Jane. Snow, Snow: Winter Poems for Children. ISBN 9781590783467
Use with a science unit exploring how winter affects the landscape
and habitats of the various animals during winter.
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